things i have done in the past month

1. i ate a lot of cake

serious amounts, in fact.

2. my album became slightly more limited-edition

you might have heard that rioters/future fathers for justice members torched the Sony distribution warehouse in Enfield at the height of the riots. "no worries", you probably thought, "the world can survive without those unsold PS3 units". but, if you haven't heard, it was the distribution unit shared by Sony and PIAS, and home to the stock of around 100 independent labels (if the stories are true). what i can confirm to be true is that the good folk of Xtra Mile, who have put their nice butts on the line for me this past year, lost all stock past and present in the blaze, including my album. there is/was talk of PIAS fundraisers to help out the labels concerned, as far as i'm aware there are ongoing discussions about who is owed what, but the fact that cannot be escaped is that it has happened, it has been accepted, and people are starting to move on. if you get an opportunity to help, please do.

3. i have been in the studio with Bobby Bloomfield

for the first time since I recorded 'More Good Propaganda' for the original Four By Four Broken Tail compilation back in 2007, I recently went into the studio with Rob (Bobby) Bloomfield, these days of Does It Offend You, Yeah?, to record some new material for a second album that is so far (touch wood) proving to be not-so-difficult.

4. i have been booking a tour of England

.. but more on that tomorrow..

5. i have been searching for a new house and a new job

.. and i've found them both!

So you see, I have been doing things.. expect news on the autumn tour of England tomorrow evening (Wednesday), 10pm, and news of new material by the end of the month.

Update complete.

Ben

incoming: 2000 Trees

Hey all,

Long time no see, hope your summer's been good so far. This is summer, right? Something about the constant running theme of blue-sky-grey-sky-sun-rain-sun has left Reading and the surrounding area in what seems like perpetual April.

To combat this I've actually been out to gigs to, you know, see them instead of play them. Once the bizarre feeling that i should have been doing something instead of standing and watching had subsided, I finally got to see Death Cab in Brixton last week, and also Bright Eyes at the Albert Hall, plus i caught Tom Williams and the Boat for the first time in too long at Reading's Outside:Inside festival last weekend on a day when the sun actually came out like it was still 2010.

Also, I know it's summer because Seattle's premier online-and-in-the-airs radio station KEXP.org had their summer pledge drive in June, which is a cause I'm always 10002% keen to support. This year they broadcast live from Sasquatch festival in Washington at the end of May, taking in sets from Guided By Voices, Death Cab For Cutie, The Decemberists, Modest Mouse, Wilco, Flaming Lips and more, and if those names mean anything to you, you can still stream the gigs from their archives here. Go crazy!

and this weekend.. 2000Trees!

Indeed, it must have been summer at some point, because everyone's shedding their Glastonbury mudpacks and this weekend is the fantastic2000Trees festival out near Cheltenham, and I couldn't be more excited. For those of you going, you can find me on the Greenhouse stage midway through Friday (15th) and you can also expect storming sets across the weekend from the incredible Dive Dive, Oxygen Thief, Jim Lockey and more, including Exit Ten and Malefice representing the Reading metal scene. My personal highlight this year will be if it doesn't rain.. I don't think I've been to a dry Trees yet.

.. and then a festival warmdown in Reading

Whilst I'd love to be joining the Trees crew all weekend, I have to jet back to Reading on Saturday for a festival warmdown show. There just wasn't enough time for a festival warm-up, as it turns out. So, you can find me at Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading alongside Aubrey Dye and Dylan Louise this Saturday 16th.

on tour from September!

These are likely to be my only shows of the summer, but I'll be back out on tour in September for a jaunt around the country. So, if you have a night near you that you'd like to see me at, feel free to drop me a line and point me in that direction. Obviously i can't cover everywhere, but i'm hoping to cover as much ground as possible by December. It's sadly not looking likely that i'll be getting to Scotland, but the rest of the country is fair game, and it should be a great end to what has thus far been a great 2011. I'm trying to drag along plenty of friends of mine, including Oxygen Thief, Quiet Quiet Band and more.

Stay well!

Ben

big mixing it up

just a quick word on The Big Mix festival in London this coming Saturday (18th)..

i've been meaning to write about it for a while but haven't been able to find the time to succinctly write down something substantial enough to give this all-day festival the credit it deserves. it's one of those all-dayer, £20-buys-you-a-wristband-that-you-can-go-to-lots-of-venues-with style festivals that i normally run screaming from the idea of, but it's not just to line someone's pockets, it's in aid of Macmillan, a leading charity in helping to support the victims of cancer. you know, the real C-word. for this reason i'm honoured to be taking part in a day of live music, comedy and more.

and to be honest i'm not sure that 11.50pm on a school night is an ideal time to try and dig deep emotionally and try and do an important cause justice. and then i thought, fuck it.

let's face it, cancer will at some point affect either you or someone you know. it probably already has. depressing? sure. statistically accurate? very. the good people of macmillan, leading cancer care charity and organisers of the Big Mix, dedicate themselves to giving people living with cancer as comfortable a life as they can provide, whether it's through medical support, financial support or otherwise.

you'll find me this Saturday at Spitalfields market, 6.30pm.

b. x

xfm listen again, interviews and more..

yikes, where did that week go?!

this time last week i was sat here telling you of the xfm session. well, it went well. a good chat about the recent tour, some cool texts in and live versions of 'Singalong' and 'Tell Avril..' can all be listened to right here on the xfm website until Thursday evening (16th). it's about an hour and a quarter into the show, and i'm pleased to report i survived.

in other news, the various interviews I did on the road seem to be seeing the light of day. you can see me looking particularly rough for Moon and Back Music by clicking here, or maybe listen to an interview with the lovely folk of Spark 107 FM and hook up with Audio Apocalypse. i'm sure there are others i've forgotten, but for now, that's your lot.

this weekend i'm playing the Big Mix over in Shoreditch, onstage around 7pm. it's a great value alldayer, and one i'm going to tell you about properly in just a couple of days..

after that, i'll be spending this Sunday NOT with my dad for father's day, because i didn't find out the date until a couple of days ago (this Sunday 19th in the UK, fact fans!), and instead i'll be recording a track for release later on in the summer, as well as working on a new EP/album/whatever my next record ends up being, and generally being a terrible son.

but how are YOU?

x

xfm live session, radio 2 and how we broke the internet

hey all

a few things to get through this actually-pretty-okay Tuesday evening:

so we broke the internet

last night's album launch show for Frank Turner's fourth (and greatest) album England Keep My Bones was streamed over the internet, in theory, by the good people at Muzu TV. as it turns out though, high demand left streaming a little sketchy. thanks to those of you who made it through the constant rebuffering and helped me enjoy what was frankly one of the best gigs i've ever played ever, and sorry to those of you who just couldn't get it. for what it's worth, Frank's triumphant ninety-minute set is now available to watch again here - just search for Frank Turner Barfly or some equally simple search term and we'll all be fine. watch out for an extra-special 'District' in the closing stages too, featuring yours truly. having spent the majority of the past month with him, it's going to be a shame to not be seeing FT now until the end of the summer, but i'm sure he'll be okay without me.

xfm live session this thursday

this Thursday the good people of Xposure With John Kennedy have kindly agreed to have me in for a live session sometime between 10pm and 2am (though in reality, i hear it'll be between 11pm and 12.30ish). whilst i'd love to pretend it's because Outside There's A Curse has just gone platinum in French Polynesia, it's actually because i'm one of the lucky artists to be playing The Big Mix festival in Shoreditch on 18th June. i'll be joined by a few other acts as John Kennedy grills us as to who we are, who we're not and then we play some songs at him. believe. more on the Big Mix coming up soon.

steve lamacq is my Radio 2 bitch

Lammo recently commented that his is the only show on Radio 2 to ever play me, which rings frighteningly but hilariously true. on Saturday night, his guest persuaded him to give 'Singalong' a spin alongside other songs from the likes of Franz Nicolay, The Weakerthans and Tim Barry, and i'm sure none of you are surprised that his in-studio guest was, and I swear this is the last time his name will be mentioned in this post, Frank Turner. i'm eternally grateful, obviously, and you can still hear the show right here.

and a host of other things

amongst them, someone asks the question When Does Appreciating Ben Marwood's Music Turn Into Stalking?, i'm Artist of the Week over at Rock Reviews 24/7 and Mr Franz Nicolay and I sat down in Kingston and spoke to one of my favourite indie sites Blagsound for an interview which you can now read right here

there's a whole lot of other things to go through, too, but that's for another day. first: sleep. thanks for your support!

stay hungry (or eat)

b. x

with luck and courage

"you seemed a bit depressed tonight", declares Mr Franz Nicolay immediately after my stage exit at Brixton's Windmill last night, and why not? the twin blades of THE END OF THE TOUR and YOU'RE GOING BACK TO WORK swing ominously, unseen above the stage.

it's a recognised fact that time is linear, and against my wishes the tour with Franz and Frank was going to end, eventually, given the failure of the rapture to materialise and freeze us all in time and space, and so it is over, but i'd like to reflect on a few points.

POINT 1: i exist in an industry famed for inflated egos and twattish behaviour. to hang out for three weeks with two living, breathing professionals capable of conversation and devoid of alpha male attitudes was both a pleasure and a privilege.

POINT 2: tourbuses are great for sleeping on

sure enough, immediately after my return, my sleep habits that have been absent for the entire tour return as soon as i walk in the door. the first night i collect up all my unsorted post from the past few weeks and, in my sleep, file them inside various books that are dotted around my room in a bid to keep the tour bus tidy.

the night after that i awake around 5am to find that i have dressed myself in my sleep and that all of my m&ms are absent and i feel decidedly full of sweets.

life, then, is already returned to normal. after saying goodbye to Frank on Monday night where at least one person in the road outside the Railway Inn heard us howling 'Tiny Dancer' to a mostly empty room before heading back with an entirely sober Ben Morse, on Wednesday night I bid farewell to an actually-pretty-drunk Franz and accept a ride home from Jacqui despite the fact that Reading is still nowhere near her home of Maidstone.

Speaking of Frank, Franz and Ben Morse, you can find a selection of videos taped backstage at the Railway Inn on the final night of the Frank Turner tour, pre-Brixton:

Felix & Adelita

Yeah Sapphire

District Sleeps Alone Tonight

Oh, another point

POINT 3: it was good to finally get out on tour with Frank and his crew. it's been such a long time coming and it was an appropriate-sized tour for a man such as I. he remains a fucking gentleman and someone i hope to a call a friend until one of us succumbs to gout aged 110.

it's sometimes easy to forget, spending five days a week most weeks behind a desk, that there's more to life than being paid on the 27th of the month and making sure your alarm is set each night before you go to bed, and this has been a pleasing reminder of why i brave the various nights per year playing a Wetherspoons in a town i don't live in to twenty to thirty people.

so thanks to anyone who came out to the shows, obtained free hugs from me, bought my record, or a seasonally-inappropriate beanie hat, sang along, didn't sing along, heckled incomprehensibly, took pictures, took the piss, took themselves home.

photos to follow. i'll see you soon.

b. x

although we've come.. to the ennnnd of the roooad..

etc.

yes, here i am in winchester and here WE are on the last day of the FT/FN/BM tour of the UK-apart-from-wales-and-northern-ireland. it has been a blast, but more on that some other day, for i have a shock announcement to make.

yesterday, i had a good gig in Portsmouth.

now i know what you're thinking, that i must be lying or dreaming, but last night the Wedgewood Rooms played host to what, for me anyway, has been the gig of the tour so far, exactly the opposite of the last time i visited that place. they were generous, i was happy, these are good times.

tonight, we play Winchester before Frank heads off for rehearsals with the band and then some European shows, and myself and Franz have a day off before reconvening in Brixton on Wednesday night for some hot Windmill action. if you're lucky i will actually do the Windmill. Franz himself pulled it out of the bag last night where, despite fending off illness these past few days and the guitar not working for his set, he played a storming set. Frank, as ever, killed it dead. i joked on Twitter that i should pull the plug on his set to stop him ruling so hard, and i fear the humour was lost on some.

still, we laughed, we cried, one of us coughed, and we'll all live happily ever after.

thanks also go to the New Slang guys who put us on for two shows in one night at Kingston and who continue to do a fucking good job running Banquet Records, clearly the best independent record store the world has ever known. from there, Cambridge were also good hosts, as were the good people of Playfest in Norfolk. so there.

take care you lot

b. x