i rose early this morning, (what? 9.30am is early for me, okay?) to the welcome sound of rain.
anyone that lives here will know we are in the middle of quite the drought.
what a refreshing gift for the last day of the year, albeit a drizzle and not a much needed downpour.
i opened the sunday age saw a picture of saddam next to a hooded anonymous man (rip) and sped straight to the lighter side of the paper… the entertainment supplement.
who would’ve thought it would bring tears to my eyes?
as i searched for my long-time friend, the crossword, i came across a beautiful photograph of a band called ‘gossip’. the article, by guy blackman, was called ‘the year of the other’.
drawn by the title as much as the photo, i read on. it welcomed some new bands, mostly female fronted, the aforementioned, and a brazillian band called ‘css’ aka ‘cansei de ser sexy’, whichs means, ‘tired of being sexy’. it talked of how tired we all are of soap star musicians and glamazon performers. based on the fell swoop at the arias of such real women as clare bowditch and holly throsby, and recognition of artists such as jen cloher and newcomer (who once supported splendid), laura jean, we are ready for something real.
yes, tears came to my eyes, as i read, ‘2007, the year of the other’. a time for unsung songs and unheard bands.
can it really be happening?
i have waited long and hard for this moment, so i can only invest all my hopes in this article that now hangs from my fridge door and make it be so.
the last few months have seen me finish my recording, jet off to taiwan to play before 15,000 people. a truly bizarre and rewarding experience in the middle of a stretched and testing year.
(you can find a few live tunes on youtube.com if you search for ‘angie hart taiwan’)
then back for a very tight week of mixing, before jetting again to perth for my best friend’s wedding, whilst the final mixes were completed and i listened from my mobile phone (more tears).
with such a varied and intense schedule, my suitcase packing skills have suffered. i am normally an expert rapid packer in all conditions, but i did experience a number of uselessly solo socks and hopelessly dirty clothes at the other end, that only added to the weariness of travel.
i returned to melbourne on a delayed xmas eve flight, which caused me to miss my family xmas :(
xmas day itself was a beautiful event. my boyfriend’s family xmas is a packed affair of at least 40 people, accentuated by the arrival of the herald sun news crew for his grandfather’s 100th birthday (there’s a pic of us in the boxing day paper). we ate, ate and ate and played cricket (i watched). then spent a quiet night with some band members listening to the finished album.
i am so happy with my album! it is everything i had hoped for and then some. i cannot wait to share it with you all.
it still has to be mastered and pressed and released, but it is done! i think i will call it ‘grounded bird’.
2007, the year of the other. for all of you others out there, i hope you have a year of being discovered, accepted and celebrated. i hope the same for myself.
lots of love,
ang x