GLACIER MINTS & THE HUMAN MICROSCOPE

A photo I took last year called ‘No Parking’

I’m on thin ice with this. I’m only posting it because what happened made me laugh at the time. It concerns my father who also blogs on WP, hence the ‘thin ice’.

A while back the old man damaged his left eye. He never got it checked out. It wasn’t getting any better so finally he had it looked at.  Aside from anything else they told him he needed new distance and reading glasses.  He had a problem with the new readers.  I did notice the lenses were seriously thick. That prompted me to say, “You must have fantastic eyesight to see through those’.  After pointing out that my line wasn’t original he added, “I suppose they do look like they’ve been made out of Foxes Glacier Mints.”

So, I bump into him just as he’s about to walk down town to the optician to complain about the new readers. I said I’d give him a lift. He’s not good in shops. When we get there the girl on the counter asks him what the problem is. At this point I need to add that his attempts at dry wit is usually lost on people who don’t know him. Anyway, he tells her that the reading glasses only work at a distance of “exactly half of one inch” from his face to the extent that although the words he sees are crystal clear “like words have never been so crystal clear before” he can’t read his newspaper because his nose gets in the way and – this is as close as I can get to word for word – “Do you realize these wretched spectacles transform me into a human microscope and by way of an additional nonessential supernatural power, I can now see the fine detail of molecules and bacteria? My only worth in life is to travel to Salisbury and utilize my newfound powers helping out the security services discover minute fragments of the alleged Russian nerve agent.”  She looks blank as in ‘what the f**k is he on about’ as she’s hasn’t a clue, so she just says, “You what?” That’s when I burst out laughing and she gives me the evils thinking I’m laughing at her. I should have explained I was laughing at him but thought that that would only make it more complicated than it was.

Time for some music. ‘A Tale Still in The Telling’ (demo version, slower, weirder than the original but one where I gave the electric guitar an outing) from a while back. Hope you like it;

TALE STILL IN THE TELLING – the lyric

I’m a tale still in the telling

Your book, your book is almost read

My journey isn’t over yet

You think, you think that you’re ahead

 

All there is, is what you see

You’ve got, you’ve got nothing to explore

You watch, you watch your world pass you by

Never thinking there could be more

 

You’ll never count the stars

Fly a spaceship to Mars

But I’m going to make it all the way

 

I’m a tale still in the telling

I’m leaving you for dead

If you feel like buying some new music my Dream Rescuer and Rainbows End albums can be purchased via the links below;

‘Take Still in The Telling’ Copyright © 2012 & Copyright © 2017 the photo, both Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorized copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

 

BITTERSWEET & THE TICKING CLOCK

Photograph by Richard Mosse using a thermal imaging camera

This type of camera is mainly used by the military

Mosse used one to capture images of refugees

 

I’d been putting it off for a few weeks, then a couple of days ago I decided to man up and get a haircut. The barber I go to is a one-man band. As I was sat in the chair he got to talking about just how many members of his family had suddenly dropped dead from heart attacks. Loads. I guessed remembering to send birthday cards wasn’t a major issue for him. Whatever, he’d just finished snipping away at my fringe when he told me to hang on a minute. He was looking a bit pale. Then he disappeared. I took a look at myself in the mirror. The random thought ‘village idiot’ hit me. Sure, he’d done the fringe, but at this point he hadn’t cut any of the rest of my hair. I then got to thinking he might be out the back having a heart attack leaving me looking like someone you’d cross the street to avoid. How would I get home? Credibility issues abound. Luckily, he reappeared.

Anyway, the photo of refugees above is more important. The dates and places might change, that’s all. Nothing else changes. I don’t think it ever will. The eyes of refugees (the lucky ones?) always tell their own story. I went with ‘bittersweet’ simply because there is always some hope for the ones who survive the ethnic cleansings and the bombings, even if it’s just hope in defeat.

BITTERSWEET

The whole world could see the horror

Only you and I saw the defeat

Crippled lives in crippled places

Innocent victims, in retreat

 

We are too few in numbers

An unarmed army incomplete

That’s the way it’s always been

Read ‘bittersweet’ for ‘sweet’

 

The whole world could see the horror

Crushed cardboard boxes full of tat

By the grace of big mouth egotists

Heaven’s gates open for the fat cat

 

Left and right and centre

So called leaders claim they’ve won the day

The whole world could see the horror

Only you and I saw a better way

(part lyric for a new number)

My song, ‘The Ticking Clock’ from the Dream Rescuer album is pretty much on a similar theme. I hope you enjoy;

 

Apart from the Richard Mosse photo art – Copyright © 2017 Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorized copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

THE THIEF FROM THE EAST

I was having a breakfast of hot chocolate & pain aux raisins in the café this morning when I spotted this black bin enjoying a cup of coffee. He didn’t have a lot to say for himself. Odd.

A couple of nights back, about 1am I saw from my attic window two little fox cubs bouncing around in the snow, playing whatever games fox cubs play. The best moment of 2018 so far.

Also, just now, at the bottom of the stairs I spotted a jet-black woodlice looking a bit confused. I’d never seen a black one before. Beautiful. They’re usually greyish. A good-looking woodlice for sure. Had to be a girl woodlice. I named her Anita Woodlice because she was ‘neat’. Gave her a helping hand, via a table mat outside onto plant pot. Some people think woodlice are ugly, but to me the only living things that are ugly stand on two legs and live off their ego. Trump, Boris, Farage and a few others come to mind. Whatever, Anita will be safe in the plant pot. Anyway, to the point of this post. 

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind,

flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.”

This is a quote by Plato the philosopher. The thing is, I bet Plato never had his music nicked. If he had I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have written a set of swoony words.

In early in 2012 I wrote the song, ‘The Chatter of the Ghosts’. I put out a demo version with, in hindsight a very questionable, maybe amateurish is a better word, video I’d produced. To me it was just another number from my ‘Liquid Truth’ Plato themed concept album. It was my first year at uni and I was still learning. Anyway, by sheer boring to explain fluke I found out some bloke in Asia had got hold of the video and somehow uploaded it on YouTube with his name as the artist. Basically he put it out there as his own work, even though it was my melody, me playing the instruments, my lyrics and me singing. He’d got tons more views than I ever did. Once he’d got my polite (not) comment telling him he’d been found out, the vid disappeared instantly. Odd really, as I said, it was only ever a demo version. I suppose he must have liked it. I guess that’s why I put the copyright symbol at the end of my posts these days. Whatever your art genre might be, there’s a lesson in this story.

I hadn’t really thought about this for ages until I found the song in question link to the vid on a document on a memory stick the other day. Demo or not, I hope you like it;

Here’s a song from the band, Wang Chung. Scroll on 30+ years and the singer is the bloke who taught me a lot about songwriting. 8 million+ hits!

Wang Chung aside, Copyright © 2012 Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorised copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

TICK TOCK & MR MOUNTAIN TOP

(classic, official Beatles ‘Back in the USSR’ tie from way back. To eBay or not eBay, that is the question)

How can someone be busy and bored at the same time? I quite good at that. Anyway, a stab at a new lyric? Not sure. As I was wondering where words come from, this one took to the road sign that read ‘Weird Street’. I decided not to stand in its way.

TICK TOCK, TICK TOCK

The second-hand turns

Feels like I’m slipping through time’s net

Tick tock; tick tock

A heartbeat’s silhouette

 

The Queen of Hearts in handcuffs

Dragged before the King at court

He asks her, ‘What you guilty of?

She answers, ‘Getting caught’

 

The desert sun’s a spotlight

Showcasing the dead; the camels; the dunes

While grand Victorian ladies

Watch through telescopes from pink hot air balloons

 

It’s safe inside the slaughterhouse

If you don’t have four legs

Safer still in Camelot

Just don’t go stealing dragon’s eggs

 

Hitler took the poison pills

He wouldn’t have it any other way

Santa Claus took to drinking

Totalled his reindeer’s and his sleigh

 

The vanquished never take the bribe

And victims seldom lie

Go tell that to Mr Mountain Top

He’s best friends with the two-faced sky

 

I’m dreaming by day

Save my scheming for night

I look for the answers

But they’ve all taken flight

Time for some music. Here’s an older song I wrote some might have heard before, ‘Busking in Berlin’ that I’ve recently added to Zoolon’s ReverbNation profile. I hope you like it;

Copyright © 2013 Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorized copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

KALASHNIKOVS & A FORGOTTEN SONG

Odd facts.  Just before I took this photo 11 people exited this caravan. Only one struggled fitting through the door.

Recently I’ve mentioned how a mate of mine constantly gets the wrong handle on life. This week he went epic in terms of getting the wrong end of that stick of life. He doesn’t really follow the news but somewhere in his grey matter a news related question formed. He says, “How come Americans all carry guns?”  Right from the start of our conversation I sensed it could all go wrong. I say, “I don’t think they all have guns, it’s more like if they want one they go to the shop and buy one.” He says, “Is that legal?” I say, “Yes. They have a constitution giving all Americans the right to bear arms – it’s called The Second Amendment, but you don’t really need to know that last bit.” This is where my fears of it all going wrong kicks in; this is true. After a deep thinking pause, he says, “What have ‘bare’ – note the spelling mistake cemented in his brain – arms got to do with guns? Even here in England anyone can go and buy a sleeveless vest. What’s the big deal?” I was going to point out his mental spelling mistake but thought if I got into ‘bears’ he’ll get straight onto furry animals carrying Kalashnikovs. I just changed the subject; moved on.

It’s funny how a style of writing evolves. This is an angst type lyric in its raw form I wrote for a song back in 2012. Odd.

DUMBSTRUCK

I’ve got a new song spinning in my head

A melancholy ring

I know you’ll never listen out

For the words this singer sings

 

I don’t believe in miracles

You don’t believe in luck

Will stage fright grab a hold on you?

Leaving you dumbstruck

 

Yesterday, tomorrow

Lost and born again

Yesterday, tomorrow

Just another tired refrain

 

I’m talking to deaf ears I know

A one-way conversation

The words I say pass over you

You don’t need letters or translations

 

You never were an angel

You’re more an eagle than a dove

But I thought you’d maybe need to know

Because of you I’ve given up on love

 

Yesterday, tomorrow

Lost and born again

Yesterday, tomorrow

Just another tired refrain

 

Time for some music. A piano piece from my Rainbows End album. It’s called ‘Castaway’. I hope you like;

One from a top class act, Radiohead and the song ‘No Surprises’;

Apart from Radiohead – Copyright © 2012 Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorized copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

CAPTURING WAVES & NUISANCES

So, it’s the first decent day of the year in South East England. Blue skies, a double-figure temperature and high tide at 11am. All good. I’m walking the coastline to a place where the sea wall juts out toward the beach, so I can capture the sounds of the waves for some sound art I’m working on. Ambient sounds as they rush across the pebbles toward the wall; angry sounds as the waves lose their temper when smashing into it – like the wall is border control denying immigrant waves access. Topical. I might reflect that in my art.  All’s still good. No people about; no annoying breeze, even the gulls are busy someplace else. Nothing to pollute the recordings I’m getting through my hand-held stereo-recorder.  What I don’t need now is an interruption.

Then it happens. It always does. I felt his presence before I saw him. A little old bloke taking his ancient West Highland Terrier out for a walk. “What you doing, son?”  My stock thought, “Baking a cake, what does it looks like?” or “What’s it to you?” per usual, I think but I don’t say. I like polite mode. I can’t help what I think, but I can help what I say, so I say, “I’m capturing to sound of the waves.” He says, “Don’t be daft, you can’t ‘capture’ sound.” I say, “OK then, I’m recording them – does that help?  He says, “What you want to do that for?” I say, “I’m going to manipulate the sounds for some sound art.” He says, “You can’t make art out of sound.” I say, “I can.” He walks off mumbling, “Whatever next.” I stay where I am mumbling, “B******s”.

Anyway, a 2-minute number called Punchdrunk, the last track from my ‘Rainbows End’ album.  I deliberately composed this one to give the words a soft setting even though I was trying to make a point. I hope it works for you.

PUNCHDRUNK

Wings without feathers

Feet without shoes

Hearts without heartstrings

That’s why I’m singing the Blues

 

You’re out of love

Not here to judge

Big mouths and morons

Control

 

This punch-drunk planet

Keeps on spinning

You ain’t seen nothing yet

Just wait till this war begins

 

You’re out of love

Not here to judge

Big mouths and morons

Control

 

Punch for the sake of a brawl

Send shockwaves into our homes

You ain’t seen nothing yet

Take out some kingdoms when you’re bored

 

Wings without feathers

Feet without shoes

Hearts without heartstrings

That’s why I sing the blues

As a thank you to the gulls who stayed away yesterday, a number from Eels (Mark Everett) called ‘Birds’. He and I, like most people like birds. It’s a great song, great lyricist;

Apart from Eels – Copyright © 2017 Zoolon Audio.  All rights reserved.  Unauthorized copying, reproduction, hiring, lending, public performance and broadcasting prohibited.

CASTAWAY

(a photo of a sequined cushion taken with a microscope attachment for a mobile phone – my excuse is that I was bored senseless at the time I took this)

Over what was a good Christmas – even though it mainly comprised of putting the spreadsheet of all spreadsheets in the history of spreadsheets together –  my mind did one of its random things and I found myself thinking about some old words I wrote three years ago. They were the words that eventually got changed a bit, jumbled around and became the lyric for the title track of an album entitled ‘Liquid Truth’ I made in the days before Zoolon. They read like this; 

All my bridges burnt

No sparkle in the stars

No redness in the sunset

Just the sad song of guitars

You have a version of truth I can’t believe

You’re all wrapped up in lies I’ve got to leave

 

You tell liquid truth from behind those eyes

But you hide it well behind indifferent sighs

How soon ‘not now’ just becomes ‘never’

And never nearly always means forever

 

Don’t expect to be loved when you hate yourself

You will find that’s not so good for your health

All I seek is to live by the truth

If I don’t leave right now I’ll surely lose

 

When will all the pieces come together?

And if I don’t like the picture am I stuck with it forever 

My composition, ‘Castaway’ as in the video below, is one of only two instrumental tracks on my ‘Rainbows End’ album. Both the instrumentals are piano pieces. Maybe the music fits the mood of the words from before? I hope you enjoy.

‘Rainbows End’, the album is available to buy and download at Bandcamp. It’s not expensive and has had its first great review. Below takes you to Bandcamp;

ZOOLON’S NEW ALBUM – ‘RAINBOWS END’

Cover art ‘Not What I See’ by Zoolon

‘Rainbows End’, released today, is my second album following in the footsteps of ‘Dream Rescuer’ although this time I have added more percussive and the electric guitar elements. As ever, reflections of life, love and the surreal also play their part in the album’s construct. This album consists of a mix of 10 tracks, 8 original songs plus 2 meditative, ambient piano pieces.

Although, unlike most of the other songs on the album, the title track, ‘Rainbow’s End’ is an acoustic number, this song is about a subject that is important to me, namely Planet Earth and the damage humans are doing to the environment. I hope you like it;

The album is now on sale at Bandcamp for just £4 (or the equivalent in other currencies). The download comes with a lyric booklet included.

Click here for Rainbows End album link

If anyone checking out the new music on Bandcamp could find a little time to hitting the ‘Follow’ button it would be appreciated.

Zoolon aka George

 

(If you would like to reblog this post you can do it only the Reader as I am on the business subscription)