ohm at last
safe n sound
2 shows in newcastle
1 show in sydney
the newcastle venue is incredibly nice
the staff are numerous n extremely helpful
i could suggest some dinners without cheese might be nice
but what i did have was pretty good
more veg options tho
the people at the shows seemed to genuinely like us
we had 2 encores both nights
a few of my jokes didnt make em laugh so much
ok…my humour is not for everyone
it takes a while to figure out my particular peculiar loopiness
the band play well in acoustic mode
peter koppes n tim powles play 2 instruments at once.
can you believe it?
during all i know pete plays mando n harmonica
n tim pays piano n shakers
look its hard enough playing one
but these guys can do 2
mwp of course can certainly play his axes
the 3 of them are super musicians with individuality
absolute 1st rate top shelf players
intuitive knowledgeable innovative…you name it
to play together is a joy
like being in the hands of experts
the band at a very harmonious phase
inside n outside the music
now everybody realizes we dealing in a rare commodity now
you cant just whip this up outta thin air
anyway we acquitted ourselves well
we adapted ourselves to our surroundings
which is what any sensible organism must do
(so they say n evolve…!?)
sydney last night
was good gig
not absolutely transcendental
but nonetheless a solid good
the factory in marrickville in syds inner west
a bloody cool venue
itd be great to see anyone there
the bjm played there one night
we are very tired
i arrived home at 330 am previous night from newy
couldnt sleep almost at all
before n after soundcheck i do yoga
and it pulls me through
allows me to detach a bit
allows me to relax
allows me to focus
outside in the warm night
one of the opening acts : belles will ring
they stand outside talking n smoking
i drift off in shivasana ….the pose of the corpse
the band have a soft harmony rehearsal
n i drift in n out of focus listening to their sweet voices
in my reverie it was crosby stills nash n young
when i finally snapped out of it
i was surprised to see it WAS belles will ring who was singing
out in the concrete n wire courtyard
under the leaden white sky of mid evening summer sydney
anyway
we had more payers this time than last time
we are on a bit of an upwards curve
just a bit
i take nothing for granted
no smugness in our current good fortune
i just accept it n try to let it go
just like failure
just like life n love too
i try to remained unmoved
basking in success or thrashing in failure
fuck it it just derails you from yer mission
the church hit the stage only 15 minutes late
we are notoriously dependably slightly late
backstage is some wives some friends etc
quite quiet
do our usual set
the energy picks me up
my body has been softened up by yoga
i do not creep or shuffle around the stage
i do not stagger though i often stumble
my joints are opened
my muscles are ready to rock
im loose like a long legged goose – ball
so thats yoga in action helping me rock more efficiently
can you believe yoga helps me to rock?
is it yoga that makes us rock?
i expect myself to be able to rock hard
n lo n behold i do verily rock hard
ie
i give it my whole body n mind n spirit
my fucking leg starts bouncing
my fingers start plucking
my throat sends my voice out over the crowd
same olde same olde but different
i let my own music possess me
this bunch of disparate songs that makes up our set
welded n melted with extreme volume
the crowd has its input as well
the gig is the crowds as much as us
the gig is for the crowd
a swirling mass of grey n black n white
sings jagger on salt of the earth
we got about 7oo people maybe
not as good as the glory days of 2 enmore theatres
but things are not static
a long hard dedicated commitment to excellence can pay off
people notice
eventually
but eventually is better than never
nevertheless
we stuck to our guns whatever that means
now we reap the modest rewards of our long harvesting
voice in the next room : what are they…?
they are better sales for u#23 n tickets n merch
they are more kudos from press n general public
it is a very nice warm feeling yes
but i am not complacent, expectant or smug
(a real estate company name?)
i am enjoying it in a relaxed fashion
after all i am kinda olde….simply no point in denying it
in human terms 55 is kinda olde
its ok to say it
i not afraid of the “o” word
why should i be
last night i show you n the world or whoever
that if you wanna stay in tune with the une-iverse
you can rock into your grave with the guitar still strapped on
but not old mans rock
just like we werent young mans rock neither
we just are
we came out this way
its what the church accidentally is
so i can rock for hours so what?
im just showing ya
you can decide how you want it if thee but truly knew it
i made the thing
i fucked it up
now im remaking it
i cant ever get that olde steve kilbey back
hes gone into some frozen yesterday
he can only be recalled via those old songs
if you want ‘im back at all…
well we played well
they enjoyed it
thats that
and thats all too
until perth on thursday
under the stars in the summery sky