Slow Life

Here is an account of a recent trip to Germany to watch some Bundesliga (1+2) action, St Pauli v SC Paderborn 07 and Borussia Dortmund v SC Freiburg.

5 of us made the trip across to Deutschland, one Ipswich Town fan, three Norwich City fans and a Gooner, seeking to be unified for one weekend. The aim was to visit one of Europe’s largest and most impressive stadia in Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion and take in the unique culture and atmosphere surrounding Hamburg’s “kult” club St Pauli. We had been following the latter from afar for a couple of years, perhaps inspired like others by the ideology, the fan-orientated ethos and the “underdog” tag. We had contacted the Fanladen around 8 weeks in advance, and reckoned our chances of getting tickets were slim to none, with most games selling out. Somewhat surprisingly, 2 weeks before the trip, we received an email and we had 5 tickets! So on the morning of the game we stumbled into the Fanladen with the shakes from the night before to collect our tickets. As a token of goodwill I presented them with a copy of my EP, BEAR, featuring the track St Pauli, written in tribute to the ethic of the club’s origins and aforementioned fanbase. Now I wasn’t entirely sure how this would go down. My music edging closer to the indie/folk genres than the punky, skull and crossbones type. Wonderful guys at the Fanladen though, I needn’t have worried, they banging it straight on the stereo and then asked me and drummer Andy to sign it “incase you’re actually famous and we can sell it on Ebay”. Legends! After a brief pilgrimage to the famed Jolly Roger for a couple of Astra’s, we ventured into the stadium in pursuit of further beers and Currywürst. As the teams came out to Hell’s Bell’s, we revelled in the sunshine, enjoying a rare stint on the terracing, and sipping beer in full view of the pitch, both amongst our reasons for wanting to venture to the stadia of Germany.

Amongst Pauli’s ranks was former Ipswich Town full back and foldable bicycle enthusiast Moritz Volz, otherwise we all struggled to identify any of the other 21 players. But then, we hadn’t really come to analyse the team selection and tactical inclinations of the coaching staff. We wanted to sing. At Portman Road we have a “only sing when you score” philosophy. Most English grounds frown upon persistent standing. Theres always the moment where the stewards sheepishly walk up and down the rows asking “sit down please”, casting a stern gaze. The “ultras”, angry looking sorts at the front faced the crowd with their megaphones rallying the fans and starting the chants. Straight ahead we had the SC Paderborn 07 fans, also in good voice, housed in the Nordkurve, overlooked by the gloomy Flak tower, an anti-aircraft gun tower used by the Luftwaffe to defend against Allied air raids during WWII. To our right the Gegengerade, the old main stand set to be demolished following the game.

Pauli were 2-0 up at the break thanks to goals from Lasse Sobiech and Max Kruse. Much as we’d found in Dortmund, the fans enjoyed the goals by singing their version of the Pet Shop Boys 1993 hit “Go West”. The half had passed us by in all honesty. We found ourselves concentrating fully on the words to the Pauli songs. We’d also made some friends standing around us. Both goals were spent seeing who in our vicinity could spill the most beer over each other. One of our new friends decided that we should start up a chant of “football’s coming home” of Baddiel and Skinner fame. Amazingly it caught on and several of the fans around us joined in, perhaps in irony?!

The match intensified in the second half with news that Fortuna Düsseldorf were being held 2-2 at home to MSV Duisberg. If Duisberg could gain the advantage, Pauli would be in the play-off against Hertha Berlin for the right to play in next season’s Bundesliga. Rumours were rife that Duisberg went 3-2, 4-2, then 5-2 up. The crowd celebrated wildly, with no mobile phone coverage available to confirm said scoreline. At the same time, Pauli had increased their advantage, Florian Bruns the scorer. Then quite likely the goal of the match, a deft chip from none other than our hero Moritz Volz. 4-0. Hearts were sunk however when it was confirmed to us that the Düsseldorf score was still 2-2. Rumours circulated that a rogue Hamburg fan started this vicious rumour up from the Hauptribüne, the all seater stand to our left. Our boys at the front with the megaphones took a break whilst we all sat down, in an apparent move of solidarity with those seated in the Hauptribüne. Some fans then took off their shoes, which we found very strange. Departing cult-hero Deniz Naki then came off the bench to round off a 5-0 thrashing, Paderborn seemingly way off the pace. A rapturous reception was given whilst the players did their lap of honour, with Naki spearing the pitch with the corner flag, reminiscent of his celebration after scoring against Hansa Rostock earlier in the season, before sobbing into a microphone. We all embraced this, end of season celebrations in English football seemingly meek in comparison. We hung about for a while whilst we watched the fans enjoying their last moments in the Gegengerade, taking their seats as souvenirs before the bulldozers moved in. It was then back off to the Jolly Roger with our German friends for more Astra and a couple of ill-advised spicy tomato juice shots.

The previous day we had been in Dortmund, where unfortunately we weren’t able to get tickets to the match, however the club opened an arena next door to the ground where fans could go for free to watch the game on a big screen. I could only imagine that to watch an English equivalent, such as a Manchester or London club, you would have had to pay £20 for the privilege! Once again we met some friendly locals who were only too willing to welcome us in and show us a good time. We had done a ground tour the previous afternoon, and the Westfalenstadion (or Signal Iduna Park) is an impressive sight, like a cauldron inside with 4 steep “traditional” stands including the notorious Südtribüne, the “yellow wall” terracing housing a whopping 24,454 fans.

We learnt that in Germany, football is all about the fans. In Dortmund we watched a match for free on a big screen with 10,00 other fans who couldn’t get tickets. Every single person had either a Dortmund shirt or scarve on. At St Pauli our tickets cost just over 11 euros. The whole matchday experience is about fans coming together, having a drink, some banter and watching a game. The players seem to really appreciate the fans. We came away wishing that the experience of watching English football was more like it is Germany. We’ll certainly be going back next season, most likely to St Pauli and Dortmund and perhaps to another city. Hertha Berlin away anyone?!

Danke

*Bear EP news
*New gigs upcoming
*Pan-European Football update

BEAR EP is all done and dusted and is currently going through mass-production onto CD format. For those who are more digitally minded, it will also be available worldwide on itunes, Amazon and Spotify in due course….

More details on the release date will be forthcoming, however for the moment, 3 tracks from the EP are currently streaming on the Slow Life Soundcloud page, www.soundcloud.com/slowlifeband.

The first of these tracks, Dobrý, is a paean to the culture of the Slavic/Baltic countries, with lyrical nods to cities such as Krakow, Kaunas and Riga, dense forests, lakeland and late-running train services. The second, Hinterland was built on an atmospheric multi-instrumental 6 part loop and details an emotive escape from urban skyscapes. Phineas is a tragic tale of a 19th century American railroad worker who inadvertently progressed human science when he launched a metal stake into his skull and survived to tell the tale. Cue reverb-laden guitar and melodic hooks. These tracks are all included on BEAR and provide a cross section of the musical direction and subject matter breached.
These have displaced the now archived home demo’s, which attracted more than 300 plays since being uploaded 6 months ago. Many thanks for those who took the time to listen to them, you’ll always be remembered fondly.

Since the Town Cryer’s last outing, a plethora of live performances have been allocated, including Slow Life’s first foray into London. Here are all upcoming gigs in chronological order:

18/04/12 – The Soundhouse, Colchester, Essex
19/04/12 – The Judge and Jury, Colchester, Essex
24/04/12 – The Bull, Colchester, Essex
27/05/12 – The Good Ship, Kilburn, London
28/06/12 – The Soundhouse, Colchester, Essex

The first of these dates will be a set for the excellent Icebreaker Promotions night at the Soundhouse, Colchester. A Facebook event has been developed and can be viewed here:

http://www.facebook.com/events/412764645403028/

As far as I’m aware, all dates involve free entry and a selection of beers from across Europe (but brewed in the UK) are available on tap for purchase.

Finally, a venture into the world of European football. St Pauli are fighting for a place in the play off for Bundesliga football next season, although a recent run of goalless draws has hampered hopes for automatic promotion. A 2-1 victory over 1. FC Union Berlin has seen them consolidate 4th place, a point below current 3rd placed incumbents Fortuna Düsseldorf . Incidently, a trip to Germany is in the diary for the last matches of the Bundesliga season. Ventures to Pauli’s Millentor Stadion and Borussia Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park are in the pipeline, as is a foray down Hamburg’s famous Reeperbahn in search of Currywürst, Jever lager and Beatles tourism. A full match report will be detailed in a future “Town Cryer”. Elsewhere, Slavia Prague are sitting 10th in the Gambrinus Czech league following a win over Prague rivals Viktoria Zizkov. Season all but over for Slavia…

Thanks

Listening to:

Two Dancers – Wild Beasts
Yellow House – Grizzly Bear
Team Me – To The Treetops

Reading:

Nostromo – Joseph Conrad

Next Thursday 22nd March, Slow Life will be performing at The Soundhouse at The Bull, Colchester alongside Amy Fry and Toby Watson. It has been confirmed that Heineken has now been installed on tap.

http://www.facebook.com/events/397978583552413/

Slow Life are pleased to be playing the Raging Bull this Friday 9th March, taking place at The Soundhouse at The Bull, Colchester, Essex. It all kicks off at 08.00…

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=510387440#!/events/336196943093557/

Tell us a bit about your journey and where you are today.

I spent the first 18 years of my life in the north Suffolk town of Lowestoft and began playing the guitar around the age of 12. I was more of a lead guitarist at first, but started writing my own songs around the age of 15/16, but didn’t really perform them for a few years after, whilst I studied, travelled and lived around a few different places. Having been in a couple of bands, last year I formed Slow Life and played a few shows around Colchester on my own for the first time. I decided that I didn’t really want to be a stereotypical acoustic performer and after an inspiring trip to see Gruff Rhys live, I went out and bought a loop pedal and a selection of instruments to perform my songs as you might hear them on record. So on stage I am accompanied by guitar, percussion and melodica and I literally build some of my songs. I’m now gigging in Colchester regularly and am focussing on performing around the country and getting my music heard.

What do you think of our membership hub and Colchester’s growing Cultural Quarter?

I think its great! I moved to Colchester two years ago with an offer of decent employment and knew very little about the town, and knew no-one who lived here! I was pleasantly surprised by the active music and arts scene, and made several friends and was able to develop my own music and get involved with events. Its a nice little community really and most people seem to be keen to help each other out, which is nice. For a town of it’s size I think Colchester punches above its own weight in a cultural sense and theres a lot of talented people here….

Give us a sneaky peak of what you are working on right now.

I have just finished recording a debut EP at Long Track Studios with producer Nathan Wacey, which is going to be called BEAR. Its being mixed at the moment, and I’m looking to release it within the next few weeks. It has six songs on it, and I have played every instrument with the exception of the drums. Its a mixed bag of songs really, theres a couple of melodic tracks, with the vocal line leading the song, a couple of reverby guitar-led tracks and also one track which is built up on a multi-guitar, percussion and vocal loop. All songs have catchy hooks and I’d like to think are easy on the ear! Inspiration for the songs comes from protest movements, cross-european adventures and socialist German football teams!

Link: http://www.15queenstreet.org/post/17940234298

Slow Life will be playing at in the main bar at The Bull, Colchester next Friday 17th February. 6.45 start! Additionally a short set will be performed for Colchester’s creative community at 15 Queen Street on Thursday 23rd February!

*EP recorded amid wintry scenes
*Upcoming gigs
*Pan-European football update

It has been a hectic couple of weeks in the Slow Life camp. Two quick fire gigs and the recording of the debut EP in the space of 12 days. First up, a great little gig put on by Icebreaker Promotions at Colchester’s Pat Molloys, followed 24 hours later by a stint on stage at Ipswich’s Grinning Rat, surely a contender for pub name of the year?! On a makeshift stage, me and fellow “looper” Toby Watson had the unenviable task of playing in front of a dartboard. Still, fun was had at this very much DIY gig in Suffolk’s county capital.

Perfect preparation then for 6 days holed up in Long Track Studios in the company of drummer/batsman Andy Lincoln and producer Nathan Wacey. It was a busy schedule, with lots of tracks to put down within the allotted time. Some inspired choices in amplification and a strong work ethic enabled a pleasureable recording experience, and I would like to extend thanks to Nathan and Sarah at Longtrack for a great few days. On the final day of recording, North Essex, as well as most of the country had become engulfed in wintry conditions. European countries are currently experiencing the coldest temperatures for nearly 30 years. The inclimate weather was celebrated in the Netherlands where the first canal ice skating race for 15 years was able to commence. Recording wasn’t severely affected, aside from getting stuck in the snow outside of Longtrack Studios, luckily hands were available for a push!

At the end, 6 tracks have been completed and are being mixed and mastered in preparation for release in the next few weeks. I can confirm that the EP will be called BEAR, but the final tracklisting has not been finalised as yet. BEAR was inspired by the mammals of the same name which roam central and eastern europe, their images on many a regional crest. It is also the sometime pronounciation of “beer” in native Norfolk/Suffolk dialect. Keep posted for upcoming release details for BEAR!!!!

Coming up, I’m pleased to announce that I will be playing a short set for the creative community of Colchester at 15 Queen Street on Thursday 23rd February. I strongly recommend a browse on their website www.15queenstreet.org or a follow on twitter (/15queenstreet) to check out the great work they are doing for the creative community in Colchester. Some other gigs I have coming up in the next couple of months:

09/03/12 – The Bull, Colchester, Essex

22/03/12 – The Bull, Colchester, Essex

19/04/12 – The Judge and Jury, Colchester, Essex

In Europe’s footballing leagues, the winter break is over and St Pauli slumped to a 2-1 defeat away to lowly Alemannia Aachen in their first match, sitting 3 points off the promotion places (the top 3 go up in Bundesliga 2). Slavia Prague do not resume their fixtures until this weekend. From the next blog posting, I am going to follow a Dutch team. It has been widely accepted that Dutch football teams have some of the best names in European football, and also produce players of top technical qualities. Whether its Steve McLaren’s FC Twente Enschede, the once mighty Ajax, RKC Waalwijk or VVV Venlo I would be keen to hear any suggestions of which team I should follow……..

Danke

* Happy new year to all
* Upcoming gigs and EP to be recorded

Happy new year to all Slow Life followers, lets hope for a great 2012. New years eve for me was spent in Strasbourg, France visiting my girlfriend and her family. In quite a surreal turn of events, my night encompassed speaking bad French, avoiding rogue fireworks and discussing the form of FC Duisberg whilst drinking ale with a German guy. The first song I heard in 2012 was by Tina Turner.

January and February are set to become busy months in the Slow Life world, with a handful of gigs and the recording of a debut EP (title has been confirmed to close confidantes and wildlife only). The latter will take place at Long Track Studios, Essex, and I’m very much looking forward to it. 6 songs are to be recorded and shall be presented with artwork and full packaging some time shortly after spring has begun, at the moment mid-March to early April is on the cards. Having recorded at Long Track before, I am looking forward to working with Nathan Wacey once more, a top producer and all round guy, with a large array of quality equipment to play around with…. Also featuring on the EP will be Andrew “Evergreen” Lincoln, drummer, batsman and Budvar drinker. Lincoln’s percussive tenacity is to be warmly recieved on the record. A former member of pre-Slow Life incarnation Sons of The Silent Age and Norwich collective The Escape, he has been known to lock his friends out of his house on more than one occasion following a gruelling session.

There are gigs coming up as well, including a pre-EP double header at the end of January:

Weds 25th Jan – Pat Molloys, Colchester
Thurs 26th Jan – The Grinning Rat, Ipswich (with Amy Fry and Toby Watson)
Thurs 16th Feb – The Bull, Colchester (with Amy Fry and Toby Watson)
Friday 9th March – The Raging Bull, The Bull, Colchester

The pan-european football update is taking a month out as the majority of europe is in the midst of a winter break. At the time of writing, Ipswich Town have been knocked out of the FA cup at the 3rd round….par for the course really…

Danke

*Slow Life update; December outdoor cafe gig, future plans
*Musical selection of 2011
*Pan-european football update

Last Wednesday 7th December, Slow Life played an impromptu gig at the Bike Guru Cafe, near first site in Colchester. I didnt realise it was an outdoor cafe, so needless to say, it was quite cold. It turned out to be a great, intimate gig, with some nice coffee to go with it. Theres a highlights package, provided by Icebreaker Promotions, which you can watch here…….

http://www.youtube.com/user/Icebreakerpromo?feature=mhee

Thoughts are advancing to 2012, and I am currently booking a few gigs in, two which have been confirmed are both at The Bull, Colchester, first on Thursday 16th February, and second on Friday 9th March. I will also be recording my debut EP at the end of January at Long Track Studios, so lots to look forward to.

2011 is coming to a close and its time to take a look at the finer sections of the year in music. A personal opinion by the way…..

Albums/New finds of 2011:

British Sea Power – Valhalla Dancehall

Jonny – Jonny

Gruff Rhys – Hotel Shampoo

Beirut – The Rip Tide

Y Niwl – Y Niwl

Fools Gold – Leave No Trace

Team Me – EP

Gigs of the Year:

Gruff Rhys – St Georges Church, Brighton

I’d wanted to see Gruff live for a long time and when I did he didn’t disappoint. First up was the Welsh Surf rock band Y Niwl (see best of 2011), then Gruff came on with Y Niwl as his backing band. There was looped screams, toy instruments, mexican waves and one of the finest, melodic voices around, with Gruff performing songs from his 3 solo albums in English and Welsh. My personal highlight was when Gruff came back on to the stage to play Skylon!, a 14 minute song detailing a story of a flight bound to Newfoundland, which becomes the victim of a terrorist attack, and our hero Skylon who is a bomb disposal expert. The best bit was Gruff performed the song sat on an airplane seat whilst wearing a life jacket.

British Sea Power – Westminster Reference Library, London

I’ve seen BSP about 5 times this year, but this was without doubt the most random of them all. Usually you can’t raise your voice above a whisper in a library, let alone host a rock band. The merch store was even selling BSP branded “Zeus” beer! Preceded by a drunken Scottish guy reading poetry in a high visibility jacket, Sea Power played a storming set, with a selection of songs spanning their career.

On the footballing continent, St Pauli are still cementing a promotion challenge, sitting in fourth, despite a shock 1-0 defeat to lowly FC Ingolstadt 04. A tasty top of the table clash with Eintract Frankfurt is coming up this weekend before the winter break takes effect. Slavia Prague are set firmly in mid table following a 3-1 home defeat to Slovan Liberec, the only team to have beaten Ipswich Town in Europe on their own turf (FACT!).

Danke

*Slow Life play across the counties
*New Website
*Pan-european football update

For all of those hungry for live music this week, Slow Life are playing 2 shows, one tomorrow night (tues 22nd) at The Bull, Colchester, Essex, and t’other friday night (25th) at PJ McGinty’s, Ipswich, Suffolk. Tomorrow night’s festivities begin at 8.30pm, with Slow Life due on just after 10pm, a good excuse for a midweek night’s drinking me’thinks. Friday night, I will be playing a set in support of Amy Fry and Toby Watson, so if theres anyone reading who lives in/knows someone who lives in Ipswich, come along for a night of musical joy.

Slow Life are pleased to unveil a new website www.slowlifeband.com from where the band will be hosting all the latest news, gig-listing, songs, and blog posting such as this one. I would like too thank Aaron James Rodgers for his efforts in creating this site, and also his perseverence amid my compete lack of web nous. Do check out his work at www.aaronjamesrodgers.com.

Finally for all the fans of european football out there, St Pauli are still sitting pretty in 4th place in the Bundesliga 2, 3 points off the pace after a 3-1 win away at lowly Hansa Rostock. Slavia Prague have experienced somewhat of a resurgence in the Gambrinus Liga, sitting safely in mid table following successive victories over their relegation-threatened rivals Dynamo Ceské Budejovice and 1.FC Slovácko. Last but not least, Ipswich Town are slipping down the table quicker than a Sepp Blatter handshake, with us Tractor Boys looking worryingly over our shoulder’s towards the bottom end of the table. We’ll save the “diamond formation debate” for another blog……

Danke

Listening to:

Beirut – The Rip Tide
David Bowie – Lodger

Reading:

Wark On – The Autobiography of John Wark (not a believer that a ‘tache is only for Movember)