The Silent Album: 'Lines - This Is Where We Are Now'

OK, it's a little...OK then its very silly but from all the silent songs/lyrics or whatever they are that I have written together as if there was music to it. 

I decided to call it 'Lines' because I don't have a band or play music, I just write the lines that could go to it.  I call the collection 'This Is Where We Are Now' because most of the songs come from a period of time that had so many highs, laughs and a lot of changes.  I would happily re-live this period of time again.

Lines - This Is Where We Are Now

1. Reflections

2. Office Ringtone

3. Broken Horizons

4. The Door

5. The Goat

6. Little Black Grape

7. Scattered Patterns Gone Astray

8. Run and Hide

9. Sand Beneath My Feet

10. Tom Curtis

11. I Nearly Drowned So I went For A Second Swim

Very Silent Track

12. Cabbage Faced Slut

Stephen 'Kokanez' Caines

"Oh Mummy whats a Sex Pistol?"

Do you know my ears are fucking annoying! All I want to do is listen to an album and enjoy it but no, the Manic Street Preachers go and release an absolute gem of an album and my ears want more and more, little fuckers. 'Journal For Plague Lovers' is the new release from them and it heaped with lyrical greatness and musical aceness.

It's kind of perfect in MSP terms because all the lyrics from what Richey Edwards left behind and you can tell it has given the three Welshmen a new impetuous to create what they used to do as a four piece.

Its no 'Holy Bible' but I'm glad about it because they're definitely not in as a darker place, although as you can imagine the lyrics aren't about the happiest of thing ("I'd love to go to sleep and wake up happy") or most obvious.

Now that my ears have listened to the album that much, my brain decided to book tickets to seem them at the HMV Forum in London on the 8th June. Result.

Maybe I should lay off my ears and blame the Manic for making such a great record. Thanks for nothing guys.

Stephen 'Kokanez' Caines
21/05/2009

Wintersleep, Fibbers 2009

My return to Fibbers for over a year was a welcomed one. The band in question was Wintersleep, a Canadian 4-piece.

But lets start from the beginning: We set foot into Fibbers again and the feel, the small and dinginess hadn't changed which delighted me. It has, since my last visit been taken over by BarFly so I was at least expecting a few changes. It had a new lick of paint, just black everywhere.

The room was empty, which is to be expected when there were two support bands. Already playing were Dream of Apollo and strangely my partner in crime used to go to school with the bassist. Tonight they were playing without their drummer. So stood in front of us were a guitarist, a bassist and a lady singing her fucking heart out. The songs were full of melody and words for the literate. But to be honest she could have been singing about pigeons taking a poo in the middle of a road and you would have thought it was the most beautiful sight.

Next up were arrogant somebodies Radio Gypsy and they promised to inject some noise into the proceedings (although they were already like yapping dogs before they step foot on the stage). They started out very lively but it all went downhill from there and they sounded like everything else that is out there at the moment. They were The Killers without the tunes (excluding album 3 and 3/4 of album 2). That's all I want to say about Radio Gypsy because they do not warrant anything else.

So, Wintersleep enter the dimly lit stage like they were about to play to themselves. They seemed very humble and cool. They got straight into it and opened with 'Drunk On Aluminium' and then 'Archaeologists' from their third LP 'Welcome to The Night Sky'. Paul Murphy's voice seemed less grungy as it does on record. It was softer but still potent and visceral.

By this point and to my amazement5 the room wasn't any busier so it was me, Dave and Wintersleep which suited me just fine.

Wintersleep were incredible and played their hearts out to about 40 people but there were two people there that listened to every word and praised them even more once the show was over.

All in all a fantastic return to Fibbers all thanks to Wintersleep and Dream of Apollo.

Stephen 'Kokanez' Caines

18/05/2009