Happy new year.

Here’s a link for an MP3 on soundcloud for the dudes present at the party so download!

(South Wales friends H4n Christmas party jam n banter…all you need is love. ….and the boys, the girls, the songs, the voices, y cmni, y hwyl, y cwrw and y hiraeth….and no capos ‘cos Phil nicks them all.)

Here’s a lovely photo by John and Judy Finch of the lights in Penybont…

…which Beach Fossils are able to illustrate fantastically with these tunes:

Sparkley, homemade and slightly curled and faded on the edges – just like the best Christmas decorations…especially the ones you made when you were six that your mum has kept and only she can love.

I was hoping to post my favourite albums, books, drunken nights out and other topics of cosmic irrelevance but I’ve been proper f-f-f-f-flat out with the business so I’ll just wish you all well….and come to the gig I’m putting on in The Coach on the 28th December. Ramshackle tunes, ales and happy ramshackle people. 7-11pm.

Be good,

Iolo

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
Winston Churchill

and

A politician needs the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year. And to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn’t happen.
Winston Churchill

The Beatles say it best…

….Teenage Fanclub were born from George’s geetah playing here…

Notice how the drummer looks like Bust-ass (Danny McBride) from the film All The Real Girls…..

“Man, I’m just having a bad night, I’m sorry man…it was stupid of me to hit you in the nuts. Are we cool?”

Anyways….

I played a show on Sunsay with my good friend Adam in Cardiff with a couple of other good guys….

Me and Adam ‘The Bear Jones”

The above two dudes are Neil ‘The Strike Fades’ and Jon ‘Slowdance’. The hardcore scene has always been very supportive and accepting of the individual and it’s always a pleasure to play with good guys like these and shout the songs back at them with a cold beer.

This is a song by Neil ‘The Strike Fades’ called Sally. He played it Sunday.

It’s fucking great. Do you want me to play harmonica on that bo?

Jon’s ink…

Chris TT who loved to take the piss out of the crowd. He likes to eat dahl and has a very good piece on British arts funding in the Morning Star here

Franz Nicholay who is the only guy I’ve met who’s father is also a potter.

Photographs by Jay from RWTZphotography. Another dude.

Dead rabbits in the local butcher. I met an eccentric lady recently who was very happy to have bought a rabbit skin lined coat for £60 instead of £500. …I’m just glad Ewoks are not real nor Mogwais. I could easily become vedgy….but I’d need some good recipes. Got any ideas? Also I too am very hypocritical when it comes to my stance on leather/meat/Ewok. Gizmo leather trousers anyone? Free trip with Jim Morrison in the desert included.

Jim Morrison:

A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself.

Finally a packing box love guru doodle…

This was drawn from the embankment whilst waiting for Gmahn to finish his photo shoot. Check his site here. Then we went for some noodles at Busaba Eathai on Panton Street:

Garry has been producing some nice work. This is some dude from Twilight:

One was Beautiful Losers featuring  Thomas Campbell, Cheryl Dunn, Shepard Fairey, Harmony Korine, Geoff McFetridge, Barry McGee, Margaret Kilgallen, Mike Mills, Steven “Espo” Powers, Aaron Rose, Ed Templeton and Deanna Templeton. Essentially it’s a film about a group of American/America based artists who come from a skate/punk/graffiti background. No art school bollox, just people doing their thing and doing it well.

(Thanks to Barnes for the loan of the film…and you will get it back…eventually.)

…and I just nabbed this off Ed Templeton’s site.

Cheers Ed, thought for the day?

I’m flat out getting jewellery finished for Christmas but hope to photograph some work for upload as soon as I get chance…

…. until then check out

Abi Hulatt’s blogs

Sliced Bread

Abi Hulatt

…the lovely lady came up with this design For Diamond Sirens

and she put me onto this…which is immense. Amazing to think I met a bloke recently in my shop who said “I don’t like the outdoors…”. I asked if he was Agrophobic. He said “No, I am not.”

by Sophie Windsor Clive

Get me on the boat next time girls.

…but for now check out these inspiring people:

1)

Lovely animation for you by Dalkhafine (check out her blog).

Cool shit Delphine Dussoubs!

2)

New stained glass panels by Christian ‘I’m only having two beers’ Ryan..

Cool shit Christian Ryan!

How are you? I’m watching a documentary of The Old Grey Whistle Test as I put this up. I was always aware of the ruck between the punks and Bob Harris but bloody hell, Sid Vicious and five of his hangers-on with broken bottles taking a lone Bob on was hardly tough.

Sid Vicious? Nah thanks, he means nothing to me.

(Some great footage of The Clash, Ramones and The Who – with Keith Moon playing out of his skin with a front tooth missing…and Keith Richards with a knackered front tooth…I’m sure these rocker qualities will feature in some new paintings.)

Moving on….

Some Canfas:

Hobo

10″ X 10″

The Red Vest

10″ X 10″

Dee Dee in Autumn

10″ x 10″

Hobo Sunshine

10″ X 10″

Stag Do

10″ X 10″

Denial

10″ X 10″

Some sketchbook work:

Sun Moths – using some nice gold leaf…

Street Leaf

S’mo

Riot Boy

Exploding hands of the dad of French rock, Arnaud…

Studio:

I’ve got a few new stretchers delivered from Rodney and intend to cover them in canvas, paint and ideas.

..using some of these

…watched by Dead Head – the studio tech guy.

Some duders I saw in Paddington Station

…mopeds set up to fall like Dominos

Tunage:
If Duckie’s good geek spirit and Steff’s fuckyouness had morphed during that fight in the school hall and then wore Moly Ringwalds clothes from John Hughes’ Pretty In Pink they’d sound like these guys:

Brite Futures – Beard Lust (live KEXP)

The dude in the shorts has a I’ve-been-misbehaving-on-tour-and-effed-my-larynx gruff voice. These are exactly how I imagined America to be growing up in South Wales in the late 80′s early 90′s. All I want to know is: are the Goonies their roadies?

Brite Futures – Me + Yr Daughter    Hahahahahaha

Go download their new song – Baby Rain.

At your next house part, after everyone’s gone home and your neighbour is asleep in your fridge but you’ve got got two beers left – put these tunes on:

Wild Nothing – Chinatown

Washed Out – Feel It All Around

Beach Fossils – Sometimes

….now take your socks off, put your feet up and enjoy.

A shit load of beards amoung this post.

Here’s Jack Black as Nacho Libre. I couldn’t stop watching this film over one winter a couple of years back…just a warm feel-good film.

Classic Nacho Libre Quote:
“It sucks to be me right now!”

This phrase has subsequently become well used in the western world often when being told by Geth or Oli @ The Coach that they’ve just sold the last pint of Otley’s 05.

Acrylic on canvas

10″ X 10″

Orig(inal) drawing…

Gastroenteritis

A few months back I lost a stone as a result of Gastroenteritis. Got through three books in two days whilst thinking I should lick a few Champagne glasses and put them in a lab fridge to sell to aspiring models as the miracle diet. A wiki search saddened me with the knowledge of just how much this simply treated illness, in the UK at least, has such a terrible impact on infants in the world’s poorest nations. I promptly stopped my whining but not much else. God bless the N.H.S.

How it felt:

Sunday Morning/Afternoon

Lenny, my father, and I try to get out in the wilds on Sunday mornings as there are such fantastic places to get to via public footpaths. We generally meet the boys/crew there for a brief pintage.
Walk on.

The boys in the last picture all have a healthy appetite for life.

(Left to right)

Adam – Songwriter
Christian – Architectural glass artist
Barnes (Christopher) – CEO of Under The Spire Recordings
…but all would say their primary job was being a husband & father !

Wild Nothing were fantastic at the Greenman festival. I haven’t got the album yet but this should do for now.

I can remember the songs from just one show. Great.

Be good,

Iolo