Down:Time

On Wednesday of this week (28/07) I am having a major back operation. The operation is to remove a prolapsed disc and fit a little gadget in me called a Wallis Ligament.

My back problems started five years ago when lifting a guitar cab badly, at the time my back went in to total spazam and after a few weeks it got better - however it never fully recovered.

A few years ago I went to the doctors and they sent me to get physio at the hospital, but after 3 months of that it did not help. So last year I went back to the doctors and got referred to a specialist.

This 'specialist' told me that I was most likely imagining the constant pain I was in and was a complete idiot, I did get referred for a MRI scan which came back showing actually how bad my back was.

So it was a fair few months ago I got told I would be having an operation and now, it is days away.

I am nervous and not really looking forward to it - the recovery time is 6 weeks flat on my back and it will take 6 months to fully recover from the operation.

However I hope that soon the pain I am in everyday will improve and it will all be worth it.

I'll update you when I am back home after the Op ... :)

13

Today is not a good day. I am having a bad day. Its Tuesday 13th July 2010.

Six weeks ago I ordered a sampler and synth from Dolphin Music using the Arts Council funded Take it away scheme. Today I got confirmation that I have to wait another six weeks until I get the synth.

I ordered the latest Roland SH-01 GAIA synth and annoyingly my local shop GAK have them in stock, so I wanted to cancel my order with Dolphin. But because I am ordering it as part of the Take it away scheme I cannot cancel the order.

So I now have to wait and it will be 3 months from when I first ordered the item that I'll get it. It could even be longer.

Its really pissed me off as I wanted to crack on with ATP:LIVE during August after my operation (more on that another day).

I spent half hour on the phone to Dolphin trying to resolve it but there is nothing 'they' can do. If I am totally honest I am sure there is. So I wrote a letter to all concerned and hope that they look at the situation and either release me from the contract or find another way of sourcing the GAIA. Even if it is at their expense.

On the plus side - my 'Catch the pigeon' DVD arrived today which I hope to use as part of the live show...Knowing my luck at the moment the disc will be broken.

Anyway - going to 2000 Trees this weekend - can't wait!

RTF - Reviews arrive

Hello - here are a couple of reviews to tempt you into buying / listening / etc-er-ing

Sound Advise (Isaac Ashe)
BRIGHTON beatmaker Amongst The Pigeon's Repeat To Fade EP is worth playing over again.
A more sturdy, flowing collection than his eclectic LP Music To Brush Your Teeth To, the six-track release starts slow with ambient Mocha To Go and then progresses nicely throughout.

A little of the comical quirkiness of previous Amongst The Pigeons has been lost, and any song about a waltz such as Michael Jackson's Last Waltz should surely be three beats-per-minute, harrumph.

But nevertheless with tracks like the moody The Darker Side Of... and skankin' The Kids Of Today this excellent collection should be racing into your collection.

Brighton Source (NC)
Post-party mash-up music is the snappy soundbite accompanying this strange release, although anyone hoping to come down gently to its tonal niceties is likely to spiral back into a giddy hallucinogenic whirl.

Eerie spoken vocals vie with dark electronic beats and everyday soundscapes, from Belfast airport to a gaggle of pissed-up teens, creating an uneasy yet wholly compelling package from the deepest recesses of the artistic psyche.

‘Michael Jackson’s Last Waltz’, in particular, sums up what one would imagine a remotely administered overdose might indeed feel like – pretty damn bloody spooky we’d imagine.

15 Min Mini Mix

Also - last weekend whilst being depressed I was not at Glastonbury I made a little 15 min mini mix. Here is is ... hope you like it :)

Amongst The Pigeons - Mini Mix June 2010 by Amongst The Pigeons

Rehersals

Last weekend was The Glastonbury Festival and for the first time since 1994 I did not go. I was gutted. Added to this upset the England football team crashed out of the world cup. All in all it was a rather depressing weekend.

However! It was also the first ever ATP:LIVE rehearsal. The photo above is of my ATP:LIVE desk with my new ATP logo :)

My set up (for now) is me, my macbook, a roland 404sx sampler and a roland gaia. All of these sit on top of a keyboard stand with pasting table folded up on top. Rock n Roll!

I will admit there is some way to go in terms of perfecting the set but it was great to hear my music coming back at me through the speakers in my music room. I have over 140 samples which make up the beats and vocal samples in the songs and I am re working all the tracks with new synth parts and well ... its just fun doing it.

My aim is to start gigging around October time - I would like to do it before but am having a rather major operation at the end of July which will leave me flat on my back for 6 weeks. More on that in the future.

Anyway - I am feeling positive about ATP:LIVE and my hope is to not only return to Glastonbury as a punter next year but also play there too.

I live in hope ...

Repeat to Spotify

Repeat to fade is now available to listen to on Spotify.

If you are on Spotify - please help by staring the album and telling all your good friends (and bad ones) about it using networking tools such as Facebook.

In other news I am totally heartbroken I am not at Glastonbury this weekend - I never want to miss one every again.

ATP:LIVE is plodding on nicely and I hope to have some photos and footage available soon.
It will be like that Michael Jackson ' this is it ' film - but without me being dead!

Have a top weekend folks ... Coo x

ATPRMX007 - Turncoat RP

ATPRMX007 - Turncoat RP by Amongst The Pigeons

Hi Pigeon People.

Another remix has been completed and its linked above from my SoundCloud account.

Hope you like it.

The original song is by a Brighton band who I love called 'Turncoat', please do check them out as they are great. This was their song 'Recovery Position' - its now ATPRMX007.

Plenty more remixes coming up ... once I've done a dozen or so I'll be making a little CDR with them all on for people to buy/download etc.

In other news I waiting for some new bits of kit to arrive which will enable me to work on ATP:LIVE ... fantastic!

Cx

Repeat to iTunes

Ok folks the new ATP EP is now available from the good folks at iTunes. So you can now buy it on CD (recommended) or indeed a digital copy :)

Click to buy here from iTunes!

I have almost sent out the promo copies and look forward to the reviews coming in during July.

Also I have set up a Facebook event for the EP launch - click here!

Please join up and invite your friends telling them how amazing I am ... then hassle people on the radio to play my music. It all helps!

Ambition bites the nails of success.

Last weekend I went to The Great Escape 'festival' in Brighton. TGE for those of you that don't know is largely an industry based event in which bands from across the world come to Brighton to play gigs and be watched by delegates and fans.

I went along to a few gigs - the best of which was at The Dome on Saturday Night - I saw Unicorn Kid who I am really liking at the moment. He was supporting Chase & Status who were just amazing.

As such it has not become one of my ambitions to play on stage at The Dome in Brighton. It was just simply amazing watching the artists from the circle and seeing everyone dancing and going mental.

Following TGE I went out to Holland and on my flight back yesterday I was listening to some ATP tracks and working out in my mind how I can finally do ATP Live ... I have started making notes and looking into equipment - it will happen soon and boy oh boy - when it does it will be great.

There are 3 gigs I want to achieve: 1. Playing at Glastonbury, 2. Playing at Brixton Academy & 3. Playing at The Dome, Brighton.

It may never happen but without ambition nothing does.

Press / Release (and press again)

It's all go-go-go here at ATPHQ. I have all the EPs back and am currently sending out Press Release's to the Monthly Music Mags - once they are all out its the weekly ones and Radio Stations that need doing - In total there are about 150 Jiffy envelopes to write. Fun Times.

I am also working on some new-new music and it's sounding VERY different - think Classical vs The Streets - kind of .... then divide by folk and you are close.

Anyway - just wanted to say hello to the internet world and get back to this task. Bye x