Rachel.

How does a person imprint so comprehensively on someone that they almost haunt you, even when you have never met them? 

Back when I first started my website Dean from Australia, one of the first pieces I wrote was a love letter to the seemingly lost Pink Floyd backing vocalist Rachel Fury. That first post and its subsequent iteration "Oh Beautiful Fury" - which I reposted with additional information (and have since added more as new information comes to hand) - have become the most viewed posts at my site, racking up some 30,000 page views since I published them back in 2010 and 2011 respectively. In reality, it's probably not that impressive a number - but it is to me. It seems that I tapped into a world wide community of Rachel Fury devotees who were just as captivated by her as I am. Dozens of commentors to that original piece shared anecdotes, memories of seeing her live with Pink Floyd and asking the same questions that I was. 

What happened to Rachel Fury?

For the uninitiated readers here who are slightly creeped out right about now, let me recap.

Rachel Fury (image credit: Pink Floyd Music, copyright © 1987).

Rachel Fury was a backing vocalist on Pink Floyd's "Delicate Sound of Thunder" world tour which traversed the globe between 1987 and 1989. A U.S. segment of the tour was captured over five nights in August 1988 and became the double live album and film "Delicate Sound of Thunder" and it became a best seller. I first saw this concert video in 1990, as I recounted in my original piece, when my father purchased a copy and brought it home. We played it on our home stereo system one weekend night. Dad was something of a home theater aficionado - back in the days before decent systems and we got to see the concert in crisp stereo sound that lifted the roof off the house.

Rachel Fury began her career roughly 16 years earlier in 1971 as Rachel Brennock (her birth name), appearing in various British TV shows and films such as Mr Horatio Knibbles (1971) and Robin Hood Junior (1975). During this period, Brennock was building a career as a serious singer and In 1972, under the name "Weeny Bopper", Brennock recorded the single "David, Donny and Michael", a Pye Records release intended to capitalise on weenybopper enthusiasm for David Cassidy, Donny Osmond, and Michael Jackson. 

By 1978, having worked diligently within the British industry, Rachel Brennock was an established London session singer, known for a "sassy 'Ronettes' sound." Perhaps her most notable performance from that period was (allegedly) on the Buggles classic "Video Killed The Radio Star". In a 2009 interview with now defunct website Pop Junkie TV, former Typically Tropical (remember the one hit wonder "Barbados" anyone?) band member Geraint Hughes, Hughes describes Brennock as a superior vocalist who impressed everyone she met with her talent. It is also during this time that another Pink Floyd alum, Sam Brown and Rachel Brennock crossed paths though whether they performed together is impossible to know.

Rachel Fury (date unknown/courtesy Col Hancock).

Rachel Fury (date unknown/courtesy Col Hancock).

 Rachel Fury, Alan St. Clair, Howard Devoto circa 1983. (image credit Alan St. Clair).

I covered Rachel's - now Rachel Fury - early 80's period with Alan St. Clair and Howard Devoto of The Lover Speaks in my original 2011 post which, admittedly, was pretty sparse. Her movements through the New Wave era saw her travel widely in the U.S. and she continued to garner significant plaudits for her vocal talent. There was a collaboration with noted British singer/songwriter Phil Saatchi on an 1987 album called Wheel Of Fortune in which Rachel co-wrote a track called When We Dream. Around this time, she had come to the notice of Pink Floyd's personnel and this led to her signing with the band for the Momentary Lapse of Reason album and the Delicate Sound of Thunder tour. 

From the moment I saw her on screen in that concert, I was struck dumb - not in the least because, as a 15 year old, I saw her as something of a goddess! But perhaps more significantly it was because of her vocal performance - most notably on the Richard Wright penned track "Great Gig In The Sky". This song, which came from Pink Floyd's 1973 Dark Side Of The Moon, is particularly awe inspiring because it features no words. Rather, it is characterized by three verses of insanely powerful vocals in the form of ethereal wails and cries.

Rachel Fury (image credit: Pink Floyd Music, copyright © 1987).

The live performance required a powerful interpretation of the original composition. In the hands of the three backing singers Rachel Fury, Durga McBroom and Margaret Taylor, it was elevated to something of a religious experience. It was Fury whose stewardship of the first 'verse' of the song struck something deep in me when I first witnessed it. Of the three vocalists, hers was the most powerful, the most passionate, requiring an insane amount of discipline to traverse the wide vocal range. It was an utterly captivating performance. Her duet with David Gilmour on "Comfortably Numb" is equally so and I said in my original piece that there is an undeniable chemistry between the two and perhaps a flirtatious one, as evidenced in their interaction on the track "Money" which is performed with such a playfulness by the whole band. 

Rachel Fury  with David Gilmour (image credit: Pink Floyd Music, copyright © 1987).

Of all the backing vocalists who toured with Pink Floyd, Rachel Fury is undoubtedly the most mysterious. And this is simply because at the conclusion of the DSOT tour in 1989 she, quite literally, disappeared. Pink Floyd returned to the studio to record a follow up album "The Division Bell" and when they announced their subsequent "Pulse" world tour in the mid 90's, I specifically looked for Rachel's name in the line-up. She wasn't there. In fact the only returning backing vocalist for that tour was Durga McBroom and accompanying her was noted singer songwriter Sam Brown, whose single "You Better Stop" did great business in the early 90's and noted British session singer Claudia Fontaine. 

Where was Rachel? What had happened to her?

The question kicked around in my consciousness for a while but it eventually faded. In those pre-internet days, any hope of finding any useful information was impossible and even with the advent of the web, accurate information was still impossible to come by. For years, I treasured my double cassette edition of the Delicate Sound of Thunder tour recording and remained enamored by Rachel's voice. When I came to write the original 2010/11 pieces, information was still sparse though a few sources of information - that checked out - allowed me to sketch a tribute of sorts to this magnificent singer. 

 

Rachel Fury  (image credit: Pink Floyd Music, copyright © 1987).

Post 1990, there is precious little about Rachel Fury as a singer. I received some unconfirmed information back in 2010 suggesting that she had dropped out of the music business altogether, was living in London and was active in the animal rights community.  

It seems striking to me that a singer whose talent was undeniable, who had diligently built a respected profile throughout the late 70's and early 80's, collaborating with some serious talent and contributing to some important music - culminating in the Pink Floyd tour, could simply 'drop out'. What happened to her? Was it simply a case of having had enough after, essentially, 20 years of performing or was it something else. Her disappearance, from my vantage point seems so sudden - so final. It is a view shared by many who have visited my original post over the past 6 years. 

Rachel Fury  (image credit: Pink Floyd Music, copyright © 1987).

I wax and wane with my musical predilections and I haven't listened to the DSOT for several years. However, it was my 6 year old daughter, who accidentally tapped onto a YouTube clip of the DSOT "Great Gig" performance last week. And it has stirred up my fascination with Rachel Fury all over again. I'm pondering the same questions. I'm captivated by her beauty and her voice and hence I am revisiting her here. 

Where for art thou Rachel...

DFA.

Dean's new collection of reflective essays - including a revised & updated version of "Oh Beautiful Fury" is available now in print and digital from Amazon. 

Swear & Shake Gearing Up.

I have previously described New York folk rock outfit Swear & Shake as quite possibly the most beautiful band I've ever heard. I have followed them loyally ever since their debut release "Extended Play" (2011) and their Kick-starter backed long player "Maple Ridge" (2012).

This year will see the release of their much anticipated follow up album "Ain't That Lovin" and it promises to kick up their sound a considerable notch - as is clear from these two music videos for their latest singles 'Fire' and 'Brother'.

Check out more from Swear & Shake at http://www.swearandshake.com

DFA.

Origins - emmy Curl

Just a quick one today. I made a rather intoxicating musical discovery this past week in the form of independent songstress Emmy Curl.

Portuguese born Curl has been on the scene since around 2007, having produced several popular EP's but my entry point to her music has been via the sumptuous 2012 EP "Origins" which is available now for whatever you would like to pay at her Bandcamp portal.

This is a beautiful, soulful recording comprising 6 tracks that will carry you away with their gentle ambient sound and poetic lyrics. It's a beautifully honest recording and a real gem.

Check Emmy Curl out now via her Bandcamp Portal

DFA.

Baiyu - There Need Be No Other Title.

What is it about music that draws us in? Is it the artist? Their talent? Their voice? Their musical ability?

And why is it that we are sometimes drawn to musical styles that we would not normally identify with?

I'll admit to not normally listening to the music of the club. House music, trance, hip-hop, electronic funk...you get where I'm at? Look, it's not that I really, really dislike it. It's just more a case of it not being a genre that I normally inhabit. If it comes on the radio, I'm usually switching over or switching off. And let's face it - I can't dance, I'm the whitest white man on the planet and you would never find me at the club gettin' it on, on the dance floor...per se. 

Yet, there are occasions where I will abandon myself and my acoustic roots and surrender to the most urban of urban beats. And it is usually met with a scratching of heads from my family and wider circle of friends. 

Perfect example - when I recently download and first clicked on the play button for HUNTER, a free offering by American  singer/song writer Baiyu, I found myself very quickly addicted. This is an album that sits right at the core of the club experience - a highly polished, thumping recording, featuring 13 tracks of unabashed beats that would set the club on fire. I'm listening to it last week and I'm digging it. I'm totally digging it.

The tracks, a combination of hard electro-pop fused with RandB are impeccably structured, with top shelf production values that make use of the best electronic wizardry that, quite frankly, shits all over anything that Lady Gaga or Katy Perry has to offer. They are satisfyingly loud and they are sensually layered. Baiyu makes use of her vocals as an instrument and gives crisp harmonics to the songs that, from an aural standpoint, are as addictive as fuck. The title track "Hunter" is a perfect example of this. Likewise "Laws Of Attraction" boasts a powerful lyrical melody throughout that marries effortlessly with the primal urban beats and slick bass and keys to deliver a powerful and sexual punch. 

But there is variation in the playlist too. It doesn't just stick to the pure dance tracks but offers more ballad like compositions that allow for listening rather than participation (ie. kicking back and listening rather than shaking your ass on the dance floor).

There is something deeper in this music that is undeniable. They are tracks that are deceptively well crafted, giving them a story and an arc that means much more than the average run of the mill pop tunes. "Lost In Lisbon" is one such track that fuses sexuality, killer lyrics with charged beats to deliver a composition that bristles with energy and style. And there's an experimental side to the tracks too, whose focus is simply on the aural experience rather than dance or ballad. "Mind Freak" is one where Baiyu's voice pairs beautiful with the keys in a sort of Vangelis-esque kind of composition that has serious imagery conjuring abilities attached to it. I, personally, was having a whole kind of, Blade Runner, thing happening on my first listen. The second track of note is "White Dove" which is a track engineered in reverse, but possesses a seductive beauty that has me coming back to it time and time again. 

Man, this album is a pleasure to listen to. I recently declared it on Twitter as #Aural #Sex. A declaration that caught the attention of Baiyu herself - and she was good with it to. My serioso has no idea of course why I would be listening to her. It is my guilty pleasure. 

So who is Baiyu. 

Baiyu Chen is a Chinese-American singer/songwriter who has garnered an increasingly visible profile in her adoptive U.S. and who has developed a strong pedigree as a artist of substance and style since she first appeared on the scene States-side in 2010. As a model and actress, Baiyu has contributed to a number of indie film projects, the most notable of which was the 2012 release "The Illuminators: Division" in which she has a producer credit. She has turned discs as a VJ on MTVu's "The Freshman" and she is currently competing in the latest incarnation of TV talent show on CW's "The Next".

Baiyu has also developed a profile as a passionate humanitarian and in 2011, decided to donate all of the profits from her 2nd EP "B-side" to the relief effort in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami there.

As I explore more of Baiyu's music, it is becoming clearer to me just what it is about her that so attracts me to her music. There is a work ethic there that shows me that she is a dedicated artist and technician but there is also raw talent. A YouTube music video titled "Together" shows Baiyu in stripped back mode, performing with just a guitarist and herself and she delivers a performance that is intimate and beautiful. She is, in a word, the entire package.

Connect with Baiyu at her official site here.

Download Baiyu's "Hunter" here.

Interact with Baiyu here.

DFA.

Coming this October.

The Slowest Curve/Adena Atkins - There Need Be No Other Title.

I love it when I discover music that has been crafted rather than simply produced. Music as an art form has long been underestimated. This is especially true today when you consider the kind of music that occupies the mainstream. It is bereft of artistry. It resembles an item in an Ikea catalog. It is soulless. 

So when you find examples of music that have been sculpted with real care and honesty, they become something to treasure - something as tactile and tangible as art on a canvas, in a piece of clay, or a surface metal. They live and breath.

Seattle based singer/song writer Adena Atkins is a discovery I made this past week that proves my maxim that there is definitely artistry in music and, in her own music, there is much to experience on many levels. It involves all the senses.


I have arrived at Adena Atkins music through her début EP, The Slowest Curve. It is a recording that, I'll admit, caught me off guard and it took me a couple of listens to get my head around what it was I was listening to. But, right from the opening refrains of the first track, there was a tangible "something" that hooked me and before too long, I was addicted.

I'm gonna toss another of my esoteric side notes in here and say that I was reminded, a little, of David Gilmour's pairing with British Trance outfit The Orb for the 2011 Metallic Spheres album. Both compositions are highly experimental in their execution and dance with a thematic under-current to drive the music forward. 


On The Slowest Curve, Atkins and her producer partner, Jay Pinto, craft - from the ground up - four tracks which have the thematics of the four seasons at their centre. Each track is set in front of a window in the morning and the listener is invited to "see" what the artist sees through the glass. Atkins describes parallels with the impressionist work of painter Claude Monet, whose repetitive compositions highlighted variety in light and colour.

Appropriately, the album begins with a track entitled "Glass" and it immediately challenges the listener with an off-beat signature, reminiscent of Phil Collins "In The Air Tonight". There is a sensuality within the track as it depicts the voice of two lovers during the autumn. It speaks of trepidation, of fragility, of wanting to surrender yet hesitating - akin to the leaves falling from the tree. "End Of Story" moves into a darker, more cynical phase as winter descends upon the lovers and we observe conflict within them - a disconnect. It is deceptive here because the music itself has seductive energy to it. Transitioning into spring, "April Rain", is a subtly uplifting piece as the darkness of  the winter dissipates. It hints at the passing of a significant amount of time between the lovers, yet there is a sense of rediscovery in each other. Rounding out the recording is "Hot Gray Morning" and here we find the voice is singular now, reflective as she sits by a Boston window - looking out and reflecting on having left her home. The song has a languid, gospel feel to it. As the listener, you drift on its back and it concludes quietly, with warmth and absolution.

In all of Atkins tracks, there is no lyrical repetition. Atkins herself explains that they follow a poetic structure, showing concern for small particulars such as mallow, stained glass, pigeons, and creeks. These might seem overly random and of little consequence within the wider context of the pieces, but they are in fact, essential ingredients. Nothing is added, either lyrically or musically, that should not be there.

At the core of the artist is her exquisite voice which Atkins has honed over many years of performance. Her approach to song is from the discipline of soprano but Atkins has extended herself immensely, taking her voice farther and in varied directions from classical and opera,  to jazz, atmospheric and even pop. Thus, she can occupy different aural spaces, centering her vocals there and owning that space effortlessly. 

As a song writer, Atkins takes her astute skill of observation and constructs lyrical poetry with song in mind, but the lyrics stand on their own terms as a beautiful language that are at home on the page without music as they are within the music she weaves for them. 


Musically, Atkins is at home with experimentation, infusing her sound with heavy keyboards, digital percussion a la Peter Gabriel and a side of bass. She pairs these traditional elements with a variety of other sounds - both organic and inorganic - including a hurdy-gurdy, typewriter, running water, bassoon, a creaking boat, bells, vocoder, a string quartet, and even a gong. In isolation, they are abstract and, seemingly, without meaning. As part of Atkins whole - they are everything.


Adena Atkins has entered my catalogue and now occupies a special place where atmosphere and feeling within music run freeely. She has challenged me to appreciate a truly artisan style of music and she has captured me. 


I surrender willingly.


DFA.


Visit Adena and Purchase Her Music here

Friend-up with Adena here

Tweet with Adena here

Then Came The Sun by Trainwreck In Sarasota.

I've talked about the work of singer/songwriter Rob McCann previously when I took a look at his début E.P. "The Narrow Escape" back in 2011. Under the stage name of "Trainwreck In Sarasota", I enthused about his talents as a songwriter at the time, but I was also taken by his exquisite talent with the guitar combined with his nuanced vocals which made him one of the stand out musicians of 2011. 


Well, Rob is back and has just released a follow up E.P. entitled "Then Came The Sun" via his Band Camp portal.

The E.P. comprises four tracks of unadorned beauty, again showcasing McCann's skill as a song smith, instrumentalist and vocalist. Recorded, once again, in a stripped back fashion in Oklahoma, McCann delivers a varied musical palette that, from a story perspective, traverses themes such as reflection, determination self doubt and questions of endurance in an industry that favours polish over substance.


His vocals are complex as he marries them with superb guitar instrumentals that are acoustically wondrous. His chord progressions a crisp and he favours a use of minors and sharps over straight up conventional chord groupings which makes for a more interesting sound form. 


As I was listening to Then Came The Sun, I was reminded of a passage from "Every Man For Himself by author Beryl Bainbridge. 


'Think of music," he said. "Why is it that we are most moved by those works composed in a minor key?" 


It's a obscure reference I know but it is entirely apt.


I really wish that I had been acquainted with Rob's work during the period in which I was writing The Hambledown Dream. In early incarnations of the novel, I'd expanded my protagonist, Andy DeVries, repertoire to include both vocals as well as guitar but I opted to go for a pure instrumentalist in the final cut of the novel. If I had known of Rob's work back then, I most certainly would have infused his musical influence into my characterization.  


McCann is an artist in the truest sense and there is a patience and deliberate quality to his compositions that is so appealing because it is honest. Honesty in music is an increasingly rare commodity. 

"Then Came The Sun" can be purchased from Rob's "Trainwreck In Sarasota" Band Camp portal. How this works is that purchasers can nominate an amount they would like to pay for the artists work and are then able to checkout securely. It's a wonderfully democratic way to purchase music, so long as one respects the time, effort and sweat the artist has put into their work. 


In the case of "Trainwreck In Sarasota", no less than his heart has been poured into these tracks, so it is deserving of a proper reward.


Buy "Then Came The Sun" here.


Follow "Trainwreck In Sarasota" here.


Tweet "Trainwreck In Sarasota" here.


DFA. 

Swear and Shake - These White Walls.

This past week, the superlative indie folk outfit "Swear & Shake" (who I featured here at DFA Dot Com last year) released their debut music video "These White Walls" from their upcoming debut album "The Maple Ridge". 

I got a sneak peek of the video in advance as part of my Kickstarter pledge to the band, but now the video is official, I thought I'd share it here. 

It is a killer track from a band who has gone top of my playlist. Check it out.

DFA.

Visit Swear and Shake at their Official Site today.

Be In Love - There Need Be No Other Title.

I've had quite musical banquet in the past couple of weeks and it has led me to some new aural discoveries which are always welcome to my ears. 


I took my serioso to see Feist for her birthday at the 'Thebby' in Adelaide back on the 9th and I made the comment at the time that I would renounce my Australian citizenship tomorrow, just to become a Canadian and have the opportunity to see Feist live a lot more. She was, in a word, sumptuous. 


But in all of my gushing about Feist and Canadians being the most beautiful people on Earth, I received a new Twitter follower who instantly caught my attention and had me eagerly checking out her website and her music. As such, I just had to add her to my growing list of "There Need Be No Other Title" entries.


Amanda Abizaid, though not immediately recognizable to me, is a songstress and composer of formidable talent and one who has amassed a seriously impressive portfolio since she first emerged onto the scene in the late 90's.

Born in Beirut, Lebanon and migrating to the U.S. in the middle 90's, Amanda has worked as both a model and actress garnering critical success for her work but it is to her music I am drawn and her vocal talent in particular which is truly something to behold.


Her body of work as a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist (piano, guitar, and flute) Amanda is best known as the captivating vocalist on the theme song “A Place In Time” from Paramount’s The 4400, the featured song “Dreams in Ashes” from Lifetime Television’s Odd Girl Out, as well as other lead vocal appearances in songs appearing in Smallville, Ed, One Tree Hill, Felicity, and Charmed. Amanda has also contributed compositions for feature films such as 3 Below, 13th Alley, and an independent short film, Facing the Lion, by writer director, Joe Plonsky, and executive producer, Scott Spiegel, in which she has a starring role.


"Be In Love" is Amanda Abizaid's latest solo release, an eight track EP that show cases Abizaid's wide ranging vocal talent, her skill across a number of instruments and her ambitious fusion of a number of musical styles.

Abizaid's voice has a smoky, sensual and passionate sensibility which is incredibly attractive and she has quite a range too, which allows her to vary her ability effortlessly across the six vocal tracks. Her Middle Eastern roots shine through which adds a earthy texture to her voice and I have to say that I am a sucker for these influences. I have been listening to a number of artists who have drawn from Middle Eastern musical styles - both Chemda Khalili and Lisa Gerrard come to mind instantly - and I'm happy say Amanda Abizaid is a beautiful addition to my catalog.


Her music fuses those Middle Eastern rhythms and instruments with an urban flavor that floats from jazz to world music to even a little bit of hip-hop. It has the potential to get a bit messy but here, on each track of the EP, it totally works. It sounds effortless and well polished. You will be bouncing your head after a while, I guarantee it. 


Thematically "Be In Love" speaks of love and life and personal growth from Amanda's perspective and it has been influenced largely from her life thus far, growing up in Lebanon and migrating to America. It feel is positive and reflective and it's a refreshingly individual work, created with a lot of care and constructed meticulously. 


At $5.99 "Be In Love" is a worthy addition to your library and one that connects you directly with the artist - avoiding the various middle men/women along the way. As with previous entries to my "There Need Be No Other Title" series, I am pleased knowing that 100% of my hard earned goes directly to artist. 


Amanda Abizaid is one of those gems that you find when you least expect it. And they are truly the best ones. 


DFA.  

Gemini Downs - There Need Be No Other Title.

On New Years Eve, my young family took a tram up to Adelaide's Elder Park to enjoy a free NYE's outdoor concert in the twilight hours on the river Torrens. It was a typically balmy Adelaide evening after a day which had brought temperatures of up to 100 degrees (F). By the time we set ourselves down on the grass in front of the rotunda however, it was a much more hospitable environment in which to enjoy some live music and we had a totally lovely time there.


One of the things that made the free concert so enjoyable was the quality of the acts that were headlining the event. Bands such as the Atlantic Street Band, Lucky Seven, The Wholias, Matsuri Taiko Japanese Drummers,  Las Chicas Bomba Brazilian Dancers entertained in an atmosphere that was suited to everyone - not just families. You had big band sounds, the sounds of Bourbon Street, Argentine rhythms and some eclectic Bollywood bravura in amongst the set list and it made for a totally enjoyable evening, which was capped off by an early fireworks display at 9PM - perfect for the kids. 


But in amongst all these stellar musical acts was one band that stood out like a beacon and had me wanting for more. And, true to form, I embarked on a typically enthusiastic information gathering exercise the next day on the band Gemini Downs.

On stage during 2011's NYE celebrations, Adelaide, Australia.

Gemini Downs is a seven piece South Australian indie folk rock outfit who hail from the pretty South East township of Mt. Gambier. Formed by siblings Sean and Jessica Braithwaite sometime in 2010, Gemini Downs takes it's name from a holiday spot on South Australia's Coorong district, where the Braithwaites spent many holidays as children. Their beginnings were unassuming enough but the outfit has since grown exponentially and they now feature a superb line up of musicians from both Australia and abroad. Their music is, what I like to call, heart-land music - a richly Australian sound that turns the traditional notions of folk music on it's head and fuses it with a rock sensibility that is gutsy but understated. Again, I hate comparing here but for the purposes of this article - there are flourishes of The Decemberists, Swear & Shake (who I featured here at DFA Dot Com last year), Australian band The Waifs, Missy Higgins and perhaps a little bit of The Mavericks.


Where Gemini Downs mark their individuality though is in the way they flirt - devilishly so - with the unconventional by bringing a host of instruments to their music including the piano accordion, alto and tenor saxophone, clarinet, mandolins, the Cello even tap dancing. Jessica Braithwaite is a formidable tap dancer who, during the NYE performance in the park, ripped the roof off the place with an enthusiastic tap performance that works - TOTALLY WORKS. Their songs are lyrical poetry and speak of love and places, life in all it's untarnished glory, the passionate and the dispassionate. You will listen for their lyrics but you will experience their musicality as a sumptuous whole and take it all in like a hearty meal that leaves you warm.

My Daughter Rocks Out With the band at Adelaide's NYE celebration.

As their profile Down Under continues to rise, Gemini Downs has already featured on Triple J's Unearthed series which gives exposure to up an coming Australian bands and, at the time of writing, they are working on a debut album to complement a self titled EP release which is available as a download from CD Baby for the princely sum of $5.99. I've already purchased this EP and I can attest to the beauty of the Gemini Downs sound (check my left side bar where I've placed their album cover). It is rich. It is honest and it is wonderfully unconventional. 


I hope for big things for this band and given their impressive work rate on the tour circuit domestically, Gemini Downs will be an outfit to watch in 2012. Try out their music. I know you won't be disappointed. 


DFA.

Post Script - My daughter's first experience of fireworks.

Dave Grohl Saved My Life.

Rarely, if ever, have I considered people of celebrity to have anything useful to say. Other than promoting their product - their film, T.V. show or their album - I usually find anything they utter beyond that is just hot air, filler, bullshit. Unless of course they've put in an appearance on the now defunct British T.V. institution 'Parkinson' then I kinda think 'Well, yeah...if they're intelligent enough to submit to an hour being quizzed by, arguably, the finest interviewer in the world then I'll take notice. 


Otherwise their only requirement as an entertainer is to entertain me, not give me a running commentary on the geopolitical ramifications of climate change, or the morality of government commitments to foreign aid or whether I should eat meat or not. Go make an album, let the appropriate people handle those other issues.

There are few people who I admire in this world because I'm not really into the kind of vacuous hero worship of celebrity, movie stars, performers or sports people. I think it stems from a couple of instances where I was disappointed as a kid. Like, I met some character from a kid's show from the 1980's - I think it was the kangaroo from Shirl's Neighbourhood' - who, none of you outside of Australia will have any idea of what I'm talking about. But anyway, he turned out to be a complete arse and I do remember being brought to tears - I was 6 years old remember.


And most sports people then, as they are now, are just plain dumb - unable to converse much beyond delivering stupid cliche's during interviews - and that's when they're not busy putting their foot in it.


But I do and have made particular exceptions.

Early in 2005 I was going through a pretty awful time. My marriage had fallen apart after seven years, of which most of the years - I thought - were happy. In the months leading up to the separation, I had been diagnosed with severe depression and I was being treated for it.  Up until that point, I had placed a supreme amount of importance on marriage and I valued it greatly - even though I will admit, that there were times where I totally sucked at it. There was a weight of expectation that I'd place upon myself to succeed and when it all fell apart - my castle, the structure that I had built to house all those expectations collapsed spectacularly. My life, in the first few days and weeks after my wife ended our marriage, spun out of control in a predictable fashion. 


The tranquil life that I had known for the past seven years was suddenly gone, I became withdrawn. I locked myself away from everybody. I indulged in far more red wine than I ever did before and then I discovered brandy so I hit that pretty hard too. I live in a different state to my family so I apart from the phone, there was no one I could talk to face to face which was really isolating. I was essentially alone in the beginning. 


During the very worst of it all I seriously considered suicide numerous times - even got to the point of actually preparing to go through with it. I had a plan - a way out and I had come to a strange kind of peace with it. When your entire world crumbles around you and you feel as though you're left with nothing at all, not being here anymore becomes an attractive option.

So there I was, sitting in the lounge room of the home I was about to lose, half wiped out after a dozen or so brandy and drys, a bottle of pills on the table before me and then Andrew Denton comes on. 


Andrew Denton is Australia's equivalent to Michael Parkinson. For an hour or so on a Monday night Andrew Denton would conduct one on one interviews with anybody of note in a style that really does pull back the layers of the onion and delves into the person before him in a really satisfying way. Denton's list of interviewees over the years have included the likes of Bill Clinton, Helen Mirren, Sir David Attenborough, Jerry Seinfeld and Rudy Giuliani.

He has also interviewed Dave Grohl.

I've always liked The Foo Fighters though my love from them...(their music I mean)... really solidified around the album 'There Is Nothing Left To Lose'. Personally, I don't think the Foo Fighters have ever released a bad album. And I think that they have only improved with age. Aside from being one of the most disciplined outfits going around, the band also has a sense of humor about them; they've never taken themselves too seriously in the way alot of bands do. It comes through in the many interviews they have done - including their most recent documentary "Back & Forth" - as well as a handful of their music videos, which are basically huge piss takes on the notion of rock stardom. It's totally refreshing.

So yeah, there I was, sitting on the couch in my three day old boxer shot, clutching a bottle of brandy, my mind as black as the night outside and I was kinda half listening to the interview. And the the interview turned a sudden and unexpected corner. Andrew and Dave started talking about Kurt Cobain, the circumstances surrounding his suicide and the impact that it had on Dave Grohl. Through the fog of my grief there was a sudden clarity as my mind switched to the conversation on screen. I knew that Dave had avoided talking a lot about Cobain's suicide in the past, so it was significant that he would begin opening up about it here. 

Dave Grohl at one point said to Andrew Denton "OK, life is so delicate, so short that you really have to take advantage of every day...I am lucky enough to wake up this morning, even if it's the worst day of my life, I still get to be..."

For some reason - those words cut through to my very core. They weren't especially ground breaking words, I mean you hear stuff like that all the time. But, I guess, at that moment it was what I needed to hear.

Grohl went further, "It has a lot to do with why I started this band, because I wasn't done yet. I might die tomorrow, but as long as I spend every day like it's a gift, then I will be fine". I was struck by the quiet intelligence behind those words and the sincerity of the emotion that betrayed Dave's eyes at that moment. For me, he had moved beyond being a fun kinda guy, a cool muso with a sense of humor and had become one of those rare people who a in touch with their own psyche, are aware of their own human condition and have tried to understand it. It is a quality that is common to many creative people and one that resonated with me. For years, I had struggled with trying to become a writer and during those months in 2005 I had all but abandoned it.

There is a moment, a point in the cycle of a negative seismic event like the one I went through where you can either go one way or you can go another. Upon hearing those words from Dave, I decided to choose a path that would be long and hard, filled with set backs and pauses. But, somehow, I knew I had to try and rediscover the best of myself because I sensed, even then that it would ultimately be rewarding.


I began to clean myself up, gradually and I abandoned any notions of leaving this mortal coil. My creative love took a little while to recapture but I did begin to contemplate it again, some I hadn't done for several years.

Depression, deep depression is an affliction that can take years to come out of. I don't know why that is. I'm not sure anybody does. Even now, some six years after I was first diagnosed I still suffer from bouts of deep depression. I don't know where it comes from, it is overwhelming and can often take weeks to come out of. 


But there are certain words that stick in my mind that help me to overcome the dark times that threaten my well being. Dave Grohl's chat with Andrew Denton back in May 2005 was a critical moment in the journey that enabled me to go forward. 


And though I will probably never get the opportunity, I want to say here and now that in a small way Dave Grohl saved my life. And for that I guess I’ll always be thankful...


DFA.