Plum Jam, and other stories

Saturday 13th November:

Sitting in bed with a cat on one's lap. Possibly the most relaxing way to write a blog. "SO... WTF", I hear you cry... "OMG!" I hear you shout. "Where the bloody hell have you been?" I hear asked by the millions of you who hang on the every word of the Barlights. "LMFAO!" I hear you...and so on. These internet acronym jokes doing anything for you?

Anyway, we've been making Jam. Well we made Jam once, about a week and a half ago. Plum jam to be precise with the help of our friends Ann Sidebottom and Jonathan Richards, we created J Sidelight's "Plum-p up the Jam". I seriously hope that you see what we did there, as I'm sure as hell not explaining it.

It's a really easy process. Plums in pan with water, simmer, add tons of sugar, turn up heat, and - kerboom! - you have yourself some jam there mister. Check out this totally gratuitous picture of some plums:



pic a: there's two of them...tee hee.

So... Plum jam: the new rock and roll. It really is. Is it so long to enjoy making stuff like that? I made bread recently and I don't know how it makes me so happy. Possibly because it's like creating music - Yes, I know, nice link - in that you're taking things that no sane person would eat on it's own (in bread's case, flour) and making it into something edible in much the same way that, in music, you're turning something which contains four minutes of bloody drumming into something which people want to listen to. I mean WHO in their right mind would listen to a four minute drum solo. Masochists? might be a bit much even for them.

A DOUBLE BASS DREAM

The Barlights bassist, Chase, was a very happy man this week. He got himself a double bass (3 quarter size, but still massive) from a friend of ours. I won't do anything as vulgar as divulge the price but it really was a good deal and it looks and sounds immense. This, stolen from the friend who used to own it's facebook page, is actually IT:

Pic b: A double bass, loaded up with vitamin sexy.

Expect to see that at a Barlight's gig very soon.







Talking of Barlight's gigs: We opened in October for our friends the Vegas Fame Index and they were immense. Ade and I got on for their last song - a cover of Primal Scream's jailbird and apparently it went very well. I had been drinking all day so my testimony is shaky at best.

But it went well. We also played a Halloween show dressed as the baseball furies from the film The Warriors. This is Ade, Sam and I afterwards looking double hard, quite frankly:
Pic c: bringing sexy back? it never went away for us.

On that note I need to make arrangements to get some food into my mouth. I'll try and update this a bit more regularly as I've been slack recently. For now, dates to watch out for:
2nd December - I'm playing at the Rose Tavern again
17th December - Barlights are at the Norwich Arts Centre for the NRone Christmas do with the Kabeedies. Get hold of us for tickets.

If you're not Norwich based - next year we will hopefully be in your grill at a venue near your house.

'til then,
Love tBl's x

LIVERMANPOOLCHESTERLEEDS

12th September - 12:55pm

LiverpoolManchesterLeeds

After our 3rd Burger King in 6 days, we're full of vitamins and vim and vigour. Or not. But vim, and possibly vigour are present. As well as all other words beginning with V. Vivacity being one more example.

We played Manchester last night and it was a good'un. Lots of people there, and people saying "whoop" in between songs. We then hit the Northern quarter with Dave "brother of Graham" Horne and Bobby "Son of ex-Norwich player David" Cross as our Manchester-based tour guides.

This is us showing people what we do in the Witchwood, Ashton, Greater Manchester:

Sexy, non?

So today we travel to Leeds to play the last date of the current tour and we've had a right old time of it. Somehow Graham's voice is still standing, Ade hasn't died of exhaustion, Chase hasn't drastically injured himself, and Sam hasn't been arrested despite scaring the locals. We could get used to this. It's all in aid of the new Barlights album, "You Cannot Choose the Roads that Take You Home", which is out on the 1st November, but we do have some copies if you manage to get hold of us. Go on, get hold of us. Here's a gratuitously unnecessary picture of us next to the river Mersey:

Das sexy, nein?

Anyway, if that's not enough to make you want to get the Barlights in your life, I'm not sure what is.

...

...

Maybe, money...

....

Or Blackmail.

Unrelated issues:

In the last week this blog has been exclusively about the Barlights and that isn't its complete purpose. We also have other things to write about..like friends: Happy birthday to Palmer and Keiran. And Nick for tomorrow. get that in there. yeah.

ALSO! we have friends in a new band in Norwich called Brothers, who we are very excited to hear as it's, like, not just a super-group, but a super-duper-group of Norwich bands. They've got stuff on Myspace which I'll be listening to first thing tomorrow morning (afternoon) when I'm back in Norwich with a laptop. You can find them here

So check it, please.

Right. We now have to do more driving, and the staff at this service station are starting to give us funny looks as we finished our BK a long old time ago and Ade's solitary cup of tea in the meantime has also disappeared.

So, we'll hopefully see you in the Hog in Armour next Saturday (18th) where we'll be doing that thing we do.

Love tBl's.x

7th - 10th September, 2010:

"It's Wersonal"

These were the words said by a large scary dog in a park in Bristol to Sam (our drummer) when he came back to finish him off. Never has one man been more scared of a dog. Bits of this story may been fabricated.

We're on tour, and things have been going well. We played London on Tuesday, Bristol on Wednesday and now we're in Liverpool for our gig tonight at Mello Mello. We've just come out of the Beatles museum where we saw the words Reeperbahn Festival.

THESE WORDS are significant for the following reason:

We are playing this very festival (where the Beatles once played) in Hamburg on 24th September. We are very excited about this. I've said the word "Reeperbahn" more in the last week than I previously had in my entire life. Admittedly, this wasn't too difficult.

ANYWAY! Back to the tour. We've seen some things which have blown

our tiny little minds. Eg, the day after our gig in the Mother's Ruin in Bristol, we went to the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Ade demonstrated his previously unearthed love for Isambard Kingdom Brunel by quoting a few stats. All whilst wearing a tiger hat. Please see the next couple of pics for a right good time, yeah?

Here are four un-showered men, Bristol, Wednesday.

Ade doesn't have his tiger hat on here, and we think this is an important measure of a man (interpret that how you will...) so...., brace yourselves......, here it comes:

Man in hat. For all to see. Another

thing we got out of Bristol was the word Gurtlasssshh. Which is Bristolian for good. Apparently. Graham loves it, Sam hates it

Birmingham last night as we said. Actress and Bishop - good venue. Liverpool now, lovely.

Tomorrow we are in Manchester, and then Leeds on Sunday for the final night, until we go to Hamburg in two weeks time. In the meantime we are at the Hog and Armour, Norwich, for the sound and vision festival on the 18th September so home-city folk should come on down down downnnn.

New Nickname: Sam is now known as Wicksy. This is amusing for no other reason than we say so. Also - Ade can't close curtains and Wicksy lives in a drawer. Chase had his first Nando's and Graham and Sam shouldn't be allowed to go out alone after a gig. These are the things we have learned.

We'll leave you with the following artistic band logo, using arms (if you can guess who's arms they are, then you win an official Barlights cheese-grater*)

*Please note that there is no such thing as a Barlights cheese grater, but we may buy you a pint next time we see you.

Love, tBls.x

Missing....presumed....busy.

Wednesday 21st July 2010
Hi there.

Sorry. We haven't blogged in a very very long time but we've been busy, yeah? As you may or may not know we have just finished / are just finishing our Sophomore (great word...great, great word) album entitled "You Cannot Choose the Roads That Take You Home". I won't put the picture of the cover on here again but FOR THE LOVE OF GOD check this out:

Sexy, no? That would be in the village of Filby. Lovely, we recommend it. The photos was taken by uber-cool all-round musical legend Maxie Gedge. Ade and I then flung them onto the coffee table, and would you look what happened.... we look all cool and stuff. Kind of. For us.

So the album is in the can, and we have been listening to mixes, and boy are we excited. We really hope after all this (and we have worked our socks off this time round) that people like it as much as we do.

OTHER THINGS HAVE BEEN HAPPENING! that got your attention, huh.
We were featured in Artrocker magazine, which is, like, all national and shit. So that means somewhere in Glasgow someone could be hearing the word of Barlight. OK, so only a few words, but we're on the cover disc! Bend and Break to be precise which is pretty cool. If you want check it out, then it's available at WH Smiths, Waterstones and the like. It also involves our friends Fever Fever having SINGLE OF THE WEEK! So check that out, and listen to Monster, their single. It's good.

Also, 3/4 of the Barlights just got back from Latitude. Highlights include The National, Wild Beasts, Belle and Sebastian, Dirty Projecters and Vampire Weekend. And many others. Drinking was carried out. Here's some selected photographs....


Pics i, ii, iii: Some idiots, this previous weekend.

Anyway, that's what is going on. And what has been going on. We're headlining the Norwich Arts Centre on 3rd September to launch the album, and also in September we'll be taking in the delights of London, Ipswich, Chelmsford, Bristol, Birmingham, Liverpool and Leeds... amongst others.

So get involved. Check the myspace.... www.myspace.com/thebarlights.

Love as ever...tBl's. x

Gigs gone, and gigs approaching

Thursday 13th May 12:26am

I am aware that we haven't had anything insightful or witty to say for at least 6 days, and the legions that follow this blog must be missing the regular Barlight updates.

Alternatively, we've never had anything insightful or witty to say, and the last 6ish days have been a blessed relief.

EITHER WAY.... We've been busy.

On Saturday, as previously discussed here, all four Barlights descended upon the lovely Norwich Arts Centre to watch what turned out to be a bloody excellent gig. All four bands were enjoyed to a reasonable extent, and the Brownies headlining were something else entirely.

After the gig is where things got odd. Deep breath.... A man I don't know but whom some of my friends did suggested that we buy a crate or two of beer from the NAC bar and head to an "allnight Rollerdisco" and then promptly led us Pied-Piper like through the streets of the city to a location I am not willing to divulge...

Personally, I haven't rollerskated for 15 odd years, and it's apparently not like riding a bike. Although considering I was half cut, I did alright. Various Brownies and Arts Centre staff looked like they'd all been rollerskating for their country, or at least county. Example: On the right of this paragraph is a friend of ours named Ryan who was like a man who was BORN ON WHEELS. Don't be fooled by the stance, he was pro.

Then it was to a house where over £100 worth of Domino's pizza was ordered. And we drank more. And someone put a dead fish in a kettle. The latter does not seem like a normal thing to do. Thankfully for the collective sanity of the party, most people certainly did not find this normal. The culprit I think has been reprimanded.

But, all in all, an hilarious night.

SO! Coming up next week is the first Barlights gig since January which has involved all four members, as Chase's arm is mended(ish) and Nick broke is rib back in late January....so....we're excited. It's at Unit 5, off Edwards Road, near Magdalen Street and is going to be epic because our friends Fever Fever are playing, and also Olympians, who sounded pretty good when I heard a couple of songs.

There is a link to the Facebook page hereeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Hopefully see you there.

tBl's

For a change: Relevance

Friday 7th May: 2:00pm

This is our 4th and last day in Leeders Farm studio and I thought that, as this blog was started as a way of killing time during recording, and that when I get back to my normal job these posts are going to have to become less frequent (although I still hope to continue!), it might be relevant to talk a little about the album that we are currently making.

"You Cannot Choose The Roads That Take You Home"

Our 2nd album, titled as above, should be available for insertion into your ears in September. Over the last 4 days all drum tracks have been done and Chase is currently doing as much bass as possible. Ade's parts, my parts, and whatever Chase doesn't get done today will all be done in our living room over the next month or so.

For a sneak preview which may well get me in trouble with NROne (our label), I have placed the likely front cover on the right hand side.

We are rather excited about this one. Personally, something that is a common theme running through many of the albums that I love is certain poetry, quality and relevance to the lyrics. At the risk of sticking my head up to get shot down, as a lyricist I'm getting closer to where I want to be than ever.

Also each of us now seem to know what we need to do to make a song work. Erm. I'm aware I'm just rambling now. But it's probably good for anyone who might be in a band who may be reading to know that we don't really know what we're doing.... But we seem to have learned how to fill the gaps left my each others' inadequacies. The fact that we know that we're never going to be the greatest musicians in the world means that we have to make sure that our songs are actually any bloody good. Lyrics, melody and structure...that's all we really care about. Like much of this blog, the preceding sentences probably don't make too much sense even to the other members of the band, but this is just how I see things.

Then again, a large percentage of one's understanding of the world is how we perceive the things we encounter in life and how we ("we" being a massive collective noun for the human race) deal with the challenges they present. Coincidentally, this is kind of what most Barlights songs are about.

In any case, we are very happy to be cracking on considering that in the first 3 months of the year we managed to have a drummer crack a rib and a bassist carve his arm open with a circular saw. In fact Chase's arm has become a bit of a viral hit. We've met people who've seen pictures of it prior to actually knowing who Chase is.

We don't have that photo of the arm close up but we have managed to get hold of this exclusive never-before-seen-picture of Chase immediately after the accident:

It might be prudent at this point to thank people who've helped us out this year. Michael Sheils who played drums during Nick's rib absence and Simon Holden (who's band, The Vegas Fame Index are rather good - check them out here) and Stevie Gedge. Both Mike and Stevie are part of the excellent Brownies, who I plugged yesterday.

Anyway, these posts will continue I hope. This is the last whilst we're in the studio, as I now actually have to do some piano takes. Yes. Visit here once or twice a week, and hopefully other Barlights will write down some stuff too.

Maybe see you out and about this weekend, if you're from this fine city.

tBl's.

X

A Quick Note On Cricket and Crisps

Thursday 6th May - 5:45pm

CRICKET

The World Twenty20 Cricket Championships are happening right now and I'm not going to bore you with my opinions on the different formats on the game. I am a cricket fan, and could talk for hours. The one thing that I did notice upon watching the Ireland-England game two nights ago is how the ICC regulations allow cricketers to behave in such a fickle matter to their country.

England were batting. Eoin Morgan was in bat. Eoin Morgan was born in Dublin and represented Ireland at the same tournament two years ago. Bowling at him for the Ireland team was the Johannesburg-born Andre Botha. As an England fan, I am not really complaining because Morgan is a very good one day batsman. BUT. This baffles me. Not because the players do it, because money talks. It's the fact that the ICC allow it. It just interested me. Sorry to waste your time.

Pic A: Eoin Morgan in 2008

CRISPS

At the risk of making this post too sports-related and therefore alienating those who can't bloody stand it, I will mention here that there is a football World Cup approaching fast (I KNOW! They kept that quiet...) and that Walker's have decided to commemorate this by doing "new" flavours that are related to such famous footballing nations such as the USA and Japan. OK, and Brazil, Spain, England, and the rest of the usual suspects.

I have to confess that The Barlights have spent most of this week trying some of these knowing full well that this is a marketing gimmick designed to sell more crisps that are, despite subtle differences, essentially just processed potato with a handful of "flavouring" chucked at them.

Well, guess what? It worked. It bloody worked. "Look! Shiny new packets! OOh, exotic flavours! Gary Buggering Linekar!!"

So we have now tried 9 of the 15 flavours. Yes, we are this sad. Special mention needs to go to Dutch Edam Cheese (somehow it manages not just to be cheese, but has a hint of a babybell....a poor man's edam) and the ingenious American Cheeseburger flavour which manages to taste almost exactly the same as a McDonald's cheeseburger. I'm aware that anything that tastes like a McDonald's cheeseburger is not a particularly good thing, but full marks for trying.

One more note on the cricket: England are currently close to beating Pakistan. South African born Kevin Pieterson is currently on 64 not out.

However, to really test his allegiances, maybe we should get him to choose between South African Sweet Chutney Flavour and English Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding crisps...

tBl's. X

Looocal Happenings.

Thursday 7th May 11:30am

Day 2 of The Barlights blog, and we're still not bored of it.

In this city, the city we live in (to paraphrase the Chilli Peppers), there is quite a lot going on nowadays. I actually had this conversation with Chase last night:

Me: There's quite a lot going on in Norwich nowadays.

Chase: Yes.

That's kinda how the conversation went.

EVIDENCE: Most times when we have a gig, there is usually another one going on the same day and often it will also be within the city walls. A gig on a Friday or Saturday night in the city centre was unheard of when we were 17 or 18, with the odd exception. The fact that this is changing can only be a good thing, and underneath the usual layer of covers bands and heavy metal there is a severely good group of musicians going about doing their thing for no other reason than the fact that they're fucking good at it.

MORE EVIDENCE: This Saturday, our labelmates and friends The Brownies are headlining the Norwich Arts Centre. For those who aren't from the city, or are but somehow live deep underground, The Brownies are a locally formed band who are pretty bloody good (and this was reflected in some kind reviews in some of the nationals for their debut album).

As per the poster on the left here there on the left of the page there, they will be joined by death of death of Discotheque, Claw of Panther and Hunt in Packs. I've never really seen ....Discotheque play, as I've usually been on straight after them. I will be rectifying that Saturday. Claw of Panther front man Adam King used to play on his own as "Cross Country Driver" and he was like a slurring Julian Casablancas playing folk music through electric equipment. I think we can all agree that sounds wonderful, and it was. So I'm looking forward to seeing them. And then we have Hunt in Packs who are kind of Norwich scene royalty, with members of them having been in the splendid Uh-Oh's, and the Pistolas. Lee and Paul are both pretty bloody good at what they do and, this being their first gig, I would recommend you check them out.

These bands are all, as far as I can tell from my limited contact with them, playing this gig (like the many other gigs they all will play) because they want to. They...want to play music to people and although I expect, like with many of us, there are alternative motives as well, I believe for the most part that a lot of bands involved in what we could laughingly refer to as "The Norwich Scene" do what they do because they actually believe that they are making good music.

So what I'm trying to say, and the point I'm trying to make is.....: As consumers of music, whether you're in a band or not in a band, we should all support these things because Norwich (or Nottingham, or Leicester, or Plymouth, or Newcastle...wherever you're from) would be a lot less diverse and interesting without it's bands and arts projects.

SO. I would implore you: Go to watch local gigs. If you don't like the first band, wait for the second. If you don't like a band initially, keep watching for at least 3 songs. Not everything is to everyone's tastes, but that's what the point is. If you're a music lover with a massive CD collection, but your only live music fix is forking out £50 quid a year to see one stadium gig, ask yourself whether you ever wished that you had got in on the ground floor and you might realise that this would lend the experience an intimacy which you scarcely feel....

Go down the Arts Centre on Saturday and you might do.

Pic b: The view at a stadium gig, yesterday.

Speak soon,

Love tBl's. X

Confessions of a Dangerous Find

Wednesday 5th May - 2:30pm

The studio we're in is called Leeder's Farm. It's in Spooner Row, Norfolk, and is lovely. There's a pond, and a boat. As a visual aid, here is a picture of Chase and I in the boat during the sessions for our debut album (titled "If It Wasn't For The Light, The Dark Would Have Killed Us) a year or so back.

A boat! On a pond! I told you mate. Do you get me.

The Barlights are currently listening to: This is a new section about current listening habits. We are very much anticipating the new National and Band of Horses albums, oh and the new LCD Soundsystem album which are all out within the next 2 weeks...

A friend has just introduced us to Local Natives, which is what I have been listening to for the last day and a half (when I need a break from Nick's tribal drumming). Also, this is where you can find three...THREE new songs by Band of Horses, who we're incidentally going to see in Cambridge at the beginning of June. NB. This is going to be like all kinds of love being injected into our ear-canals.

Whilst these feasts are entering into our ears, my eyes are distracted by Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which we found here in the studio yesterday..... A note on Grand Theft Auto. I can not, and neither can anyone that I know, be described as a violent man. In fact, I'm quite the opposite. So WHY do I feel it necessary, the second I turn on the game, to start beating on, shooting at, and stealing the vehicles of, innocent passers-by (picture on the right: A mentalist, yesterday).

YES I know this is the point of the game, but I feel myself turning into a maniac with every passing second. I'm not one of these people who say that people shouldn't play violent video games. I just think that possibly I shouldn't. It only brings out the worst in me. Three of the four Barlights have at some point been obsessed with the game - Ade, Nick and myself - and only Nick can be said to be a "gamer". I can only confess to doing it to pass the time, which is why I get alarmed when a game gets under my skin and you see it when you close your eyes... That is when I stop. I do not need to see an elvis impersonater being beaten with a spade when I go to sleep at night.

That is all. Nick's done 5 of the drum tracks now.

Over and out.

tBl's. X

New Toys!

Wednesday 5th May - 12:15pm





A quick intro for the uniniated: We are the Barlights. We are on our 2nd day in the studio to record our 2nd album. There are 4 of us. Nick, drummer, who is currently drumming. Chase, bassist, who is currently playing bass. Ade, guitarist, who is (haha) at work, and myself, Graham...who has made this blog out of sheer boredom.




So on Davo AKA Nick's fancy laptop we have got an interesting photo-taking device (camera is the usual term I believe). Not amazing in itself, I'll grant you. On the left is an example of our artistic undertakings using it.





Now this is not going to have any top level photographers quaking in their ridiculously fashionable boots. Although personally I think the fact that Chase has put his glasses over his hair is a commentary on the possibility of a hung parliament tomorrow. Or he's a very odd man. You work it out.





Anyway our next discovery was the fact that there was various effects that we could use. The favourite was......thermal imaging!




Now I'm no scientist. But this seems to conclusively proove that Nick (on the right) and myself (on the left) are officially hotter than Chase (the faded non-hot mess in the middle).
This shit is scientific.
Ade cannot be measured for hotness as he's at work but, if we're honest, he wouldn't be in the running anyway.

Anyway, there will undoubtedly be more updates throughout today, tomorrow, and Friday (and beyond if we enjoy this blogging game). Don't worry, it won't always be pure nonsense like the above. We might even talk about some things that we enjoy, or things we don't enjoy. Or how the studio sessions are going (Nick would like it to be known that yesterday was "a productive day").
For now, bye!
tBl's.X