At the Pictures

So with the wind in the sky and the dark of the London night we have started a Video Blog of sorts, spurred on by our lovely friend Billy from Wetdog and a yellow Flip camera...

Here it is

http://www.winkball.com/users/HatchamSocial/

You may be in it.

Down and Out In Paris and not London for a day or so...

Hello I am watching a tv program on bands, some kind of BBC doc thing. Poeple like Kiss and Vic Reeves(?) talking about how bands make it and tour and all that, how they cope with touring and the drugs and all the crazy things. Pretty dry. Some good footage. Troggs argument sounds good..."-noooooowww, your playing the f*cking-"

We played a show in Paris the other day. It was equally exciting and quite strange for various reasons. But really good fun. Thanks for coming down.

In Paris this persons car had been painted -


But we liked these too -






We are playing at the Buffallo Bar in Islington soon for a special show for Baby Honey....
Talk soon
Toby

PARIS 25th May

How are you all? We are rehearsing very hard for this next show, we will be a five piece and will have a few new songs from the new album sessions to show you (very excited to see what you think), see you down there.

On 25th May (next week) we play in Paris at La Maroquinerie

http://www.myspace.com/lamaroquinerie

HS

Good afternoon

I am in Malta, I am on a trip playing some guitar for the singer Amy Studt at a charity event for Inspire. Staying at a hotel called The Palace, most comfortable beds in the world. In the days I am using this trip to write. I have been getting lyrics and chords together for the next album sessions. Went down to the sea-front yesterday, the waves are strong and crash onto the sand colored rocks. We are in a quiet part of town called Sliema and spend much of our time in a pub called Simon's Pub where the event is taking place through the week. That is where I write from at this moment. Simon runs the pub and is Maltese born and bred. On arrival on the thursday evening, Simon dress's up as a british policeman and runs in through the small paraphernalia filled room brandishing a truncheon. He shouts "get out its a raid" and then places a fake knife through is head.
Objects that fill the pub: banners, posters, medals, cups, clogs, drawing of a french man on the wall, football scarfs, joke signs - "I am ugly and Not Funny but available" etc - car number pate with 'simon' on and other nicknacks, there are many.

Last night Amy was invited to DJ at a club in the center of town, it is a much busier part of town that is like a holiday destination version of Leicester square. We went to this club called Flago's down through throngs of drunken merrymakers and weekenders. Cheap aftershave and overprice beer hung in the air as we struggled to follow our miniature guide - Maddy - through the crowded streets to the club. The club ended up being a four to the floor/pop/house/dance music type affair with a Brazilian DJ (at one point he got to the stage with a mic on his face and proceeded to 'hype' the audience and get them to learn simple flamenco dance moves) who obviously spent his whole afternoons drinking protein shakes and pumping iron. Lets just say our popiest set was slightly too low octane for the clientele and not long after starting we had the pink shirt grey mullet owner asking us kindly to step down. He was perfectly friendly to us but had the manner of man you did not cross. He spoke to his staff with an aggression and body language that made them cower. Although I must say his face was as soft as a babies when he spoke to us and told Amy how much he loved her voice.

I missed breakfast this morning at the hotel and am now starting to get that hunger pain in my stomach. I will go roam the streets until I find something.

Toby

you should probably be listening to this right now...

The album is famous for having one side of up-beat songs and a second side of melancholic ballads. On the first half, "When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)," "Dance, Dance, Dance" and "Do You Wanna Dance?" were all hits, and "Help Me, Ronda" would be worked on further to deliver the Beach Boys their second #1 hit in May.(amid a small spelling change in the title). The second side, in retrospect, was an indicator to where Brian Wilson was going musically. Considered darker and more meaningful than previous softer works, alongside Wilson's increasing productivity in the studio, the ballads on the second side are thought of as a precursor to Pet Sounds' technical triumphs, including strings, horns, piano and keyboards, more percussion, and volume tricks.

...and this...(from the album All Summer Long)

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