Beast at bay

Ugh I had the most frustrating Monday today... mainly because I was over-sensitive following practically zero sleep the night before. The tiniest things on the tube pissed me off today. An aneamic looking blonde sneezing, an old man paging his newspaper in such a way that the pages rumpled, city bankers failing to be chivalrous and offer me their seat. But the pinnacle of tube-frustration was reached when a hockey player in front of me on the evening train swung his kit bag behind him, smashing the salad I had bought specially for supper from the organic market into my face. I wanted to cry.

This post makes me sound like a delicate flower...but the truth is sometimes going about one's journey each day among hundreds of strangers can get you down. I tried to counter this initially by putting punk and screamo on my ipod but that contributed to my aggression. So I now have a secret playlist that includes the most poppy ridiculous songs possible that have many a time made me want to swing around the poles inside the tubes like a strip pole. There used to be a lot of Sean Paul on this playlist but even I have a smidgen of dignity...so 'Get Busy' is unfortunately dead and buried :)

My more socially acceptable option is Gnarles Barkley. The new album. Not only are their live shows brilliant but they have successfully and amazingly covered Radiohead. Danger Mouse has also lent his production skills to great effect on Beck's new, incredibly grand, offering.

So therefore my new tube beats include most especially 'Run' and 'Going on.' Ideally. Although today I happened to be listening to Frightened Rabbit as my salad and face merged, which obviously made the event all the more tragic.

You won't find love in a hole

Following a race against time across London incorporating 4 x transport changes, 1 x moment of getting horribly lost, and 1 x moment arguing with the bouncer over being let into the over-crowded sauna-like room, I finally made it to Frightened Rabbit just in time to catch them singing The Modern Leper.

It was an odd gig in the sense that myself and my friend were the only two going crazy to the music. Everybody else was standing still. They were awe-inspiring live and were able to silence the room with an acoustic version of 'Poke.' But my best song of the whole set was definately the cutting anti-ode to casual sex, 'Keep yourself warm' in which Scott Hutchinson venomously spat into the mike: 'Can you see the look on your face?/ The flashing white light's been turned off/ You don't know know who's in your bed / You find love in a /won't find love in a hole/ It takes more than fucking someone to keep yourself warm.'

We also saw Camera Obscura...who were grand. I officially love Scotland!

Fun fun fun

How strange. I have been reluctantly listening to two folky singles from the UK that I really did not want to like. 5 years time by noah and the whale...and ghosts by laura marling. No matter how hard I try I can't stop listening to them no matter how much I hate the whistling in noah and the whale or the title of marling's new album (alas i cannot swim).

Then, whilst watching the indie-ed out video for 5 years time I spotted a white-haired laura quite similar to a white-haired laura in laura marling's videos. Fancy that. They are the same person! I am possibly the only person in the UK that does not know this.

But that reminds me how much I love it when musicians are friends.
My top 5 musical friendships are as follows
1. The Used and My Chemical Romance
In fact, the name My Chemical Romance is taken from a Used song
2. Fall Out Boy and Gym Class Heroes
Gym Class Heroes are on Patrick Stump's record label
3. Florence and the Machine and Mystery Jets
4. Tori Amos and Nine Inch Nails
Well this actually counts as a musical relationship, as Tori was famously with Trent Reznor. When Courtney Love allegedly wrecked their relationship, Tori wrote the song Professional Widow in her honour.
5. The Strokes and Regina Spektor
What an unlikely friendship but coincidentally two of my most favourite acts of all time. Strange.