Saturday 18 December 2010

Kingston tonight: postponed

I know I have recently craved some time off to actually get some sleep, but I didn't tell the weather it was okay to ruin my gig schedule.

Due to the sudden (if expected) snow showers experienced pretty much countrywide overnight, the decision was made early this morning to pull tonight's christmas show with Tubelord, Hold Your Horses et al due to the bad weather in central London.

The decision was made by the promoter earlier today, though for my money it's the right decision due to the travel time involved for some of the band and the treacherous conditions all round. Of course it does mean that my final show of 2010 turned out to be the sadly horrific gig last weekend in Devizes. To banish the end-of-year bad vibes, I'll be recording a 2010 Year In Review podcast for [edit] radio, one of five to be broadcast in the last week of this year (monday 27th - friday 31st), which will include a look back at all the great music that came out this year, and that we expect to be good in 2011. You know, standard fare.

In the meantime, those of you in the UK should stay warm and stay safe (and pray, as I do, that your christmas orders from Amazon actually arrive in time), whilst the rest of the world sits and laughs.

b. x


(ps. I'm sat watching Pixie Lott run down 'her' top 50 christmas songs on TV. someone buy that girl some charisma..)

Thursday 16 December 2010

UK tour: dates confirmed!

Part of me can't believe it's nearly Christmas, but I'm assured it is. This means two things:

1. the album is out in roughly a month
and
b. it's time i left my house and did a UK tour.

Once again me and my favourite Bristolian, Oxygen Thief, are hitting the road with ten dates across two weeks. I'm led to believe a brand of thanks known as 'Mad Props' should be assigned to OT for booking most of these shows, and I'm pleased to announced the album launch is at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading on Friday, January 28th.

Also on the tour, returns to York, Leeds, Swindon and Cheltenham, a special sit-down show in the tiny village of Farnsfield, my first gig in Oxford in what seems like forever, and the last Addistock for the forseeable future in Birmingham. Exciting times.

Outside There's A Curse UK Tour
all dates with Oxygen Thief
(except *)

JANUARY
15 Leeds Cardigan Arms
16 Cheltenham Slak (w/Jim Lockey)
18 Bristol Louisiana (w/Gaz Brookfield)
19 Oxford G&D's Ice Cream Cafe
20 York City Screen Basement Bar
22 Farnsfield (nr Notts) Farnsfield Acoustic*
23 Swindon The Vic
28 Reading Rising Sun Arts Centre (w/Quiet Quiet Band)
29 Birmingham The Bright House (w/Quiet Quiet Band & more TBC!)
30 London The Wilmington Arms (w/mistakes.in.animation & James Ewers)

Tickets are available for Reading via WeGotTickets, and the London one will also be up shortly. Tickets for the Swindon show are available from The Vic website, and we're currently hunting around for shows around the Notts area on the 21st.

See you on tour.
b. x

Saturday 11 December 2010

photoshop handsome

Eugh.

You join me today post-Christmas party, pre-tonight's Devizes show. I have to get on a train in less than two hours but I just would quite like to sleep off the whiskey, wine and vodka headache. I refuse to call it a hangover because I can stand.

Indeed already today I sat down with Mr Ben Morse for some press shots. It's the first time I've ever let anyone do a proper photoshoot, and he was full of helpful feedback:

You look angry. Don't.
That's fine but try to look less like you've smelled a fart
That's good but it's still got your face in it

and so on.

Ben Morse is a hero, and one of the lucky few who managed to traverse his twenties without losing vision or being held hostage by other halves.

To Ben.

And so to tonight, where I'll be playing at boisterous front bar at The Lamb in Devizes. I'm assured it will work, but it does rule out the quiet stuff. I've been advised to be 'chunky' so i've eaten nothing but saturated fats for a month. See you there.

Tuesday 7 December 2010

pitter patter twitter twatter

i've finally done it. i've finally bitten the bullet and joined Twitter. come follow me at benmarwoodmusic.

album and tour news next week!
x