This song was previously demo’d about a year ago, and even shoddier than this demo I’m posting today, but nonetheless, the song has come together more in my head, and I’ve a clearer idea of it now than I did 12 months ago. It’s a cute little pop song that kept popping into my head in different bits and pieces, that all came together on the piano at one point. It has a jauntiness that makes me smile, and although I think I really intended on making it quite a musically simple song, it hops back and forth between two keys instead. Oh well, that’s what I get for intentionally trying to write something simple and straight forward. It seems that when I try to write something more complex, I end up using two or three chords!
Nevertheless, I like this little tune. I fuck up the piano, as I’m wont to do, and I probably go off key too, which is my other little issue when I’m recording myself. I really hate recording myself. Just thought I’d put that out there.
But yeah, this song is about liking someone you should really like in that way at all, but you know, you can’t really help who you fall for sometimes can you? I kinda like the gender-fuck in the lyrics, and it was intentional.
This was the highlight of my summer. The Sunday morning of Electric Picnic, myself and three of the guys I was performing with as part of Werk at thisispopbaby headed off to get coffee and food. The Dublin Gospel Choir were on stage in the main arena, singing wonderful music. We sat and finished our food and coffee and enjoyed the music. Then they started a Stevie Wonder medley, which got us up to dance. During the course of the medley, myself and Tom started doing bits of one of the routines we were doing later that night, and the other two guys joined in.
Some girls came over to us after those songs and asked if they could dance along with us, as we “looked like a lot of craic”, and we’re never ones to refuse to dance. So we all started dancing together calling out simples moves to each other. Over the course of the next few songs, more and more people behind and beside us started to follow along too, and people came up from the crowd ahead of us to dance behind us too. People took photos, smiled, and watched. Some people we dragged up to join us too and at some point we looked around to see a crowd of people all following our moves behind us.
When the set finished, we held Tom (who was doing most of the leading dance-wise) up on our shoulders as the dancers behind us applauded us and the Gospel choir both. So many people came over to say thank you, and saying it was the best moment of the festival for them, but we were just happy to dance along to the fantastic music and thrilled when other people saw fit to follow what we were doing and dance along with us.
It was a beautiful afternoon. I’ve only discovered two youtube videos of it so far, but you’d never know, more might surface.
Firstly, a short one, where you can see myself, Chris and Tom in front, and Stephen in the red vest behind us.
Secondly, a video shot from the side, showing more of the people who were dancing along behind us.
edit: here’s a 3rd video, this time from the front, and you can clearly see myself and the other three guys who started it all:
edit again: here’s a 4th video, also from the front and a bit short too.
Thanks to everyone who came out and supported us at Electric Picnic yesterday. Great day and LOVED the flash mob! If you have any pix or videos send them on, we’d love to see them!!!
Flash Mob…. it’s not often that you get to watch a show from the stage but this made our day!! Think poor Kerry-Anne nearly forgot the words when she saw them!! It’s what the Picnic is all about!!! Thanks guys!
The whole weekend was fantastic, and the rain on Sunday/Monday didn’t marr it at all, just made things a little more challenging. I had another random beautiful moment where I was having some chips between catching UNKLE and Fever Ray, and sat down at one of the upright pianos in the wood sculpture areas near the electric arena. Of course it was delightfully out of tune and honky tonk, so I started playing some Ray Charles and Tom Waits covers on it, and ended up playing in the rain to a few people who were crossing the area to catch The National or Foals. But it was wet, and when my chips were gone, I headed off to catch Fever Ray instead, but it was rather lovely too. I’m sure those pianos suffered through a lot of “Chopsticks” and the like, so a bit of jazzier stuff was a nice respite I imagine.
I knew what I wanted from this song as I wrote it. I knew what I was writing about, and how the song would be structured, more or less. But I was still surprised by the melody that came from the lyrics. Sometimes I can sit and just hear the melody that is meant to be there when I read the lyrics, other times I have to work on it quite a bit to get something that works. But for this, there were melody ideas there as I was writing the lyrics, so when I sat at the piano, the whole song was waiting for me to find the piano part.
The demo is just an idea of what it’ll be like – I think this is going to be a very richly arranged song when it is finished, and I hope that the person it is about likes the song. It’s quickly become one of my own personal favourites to sing.
[audio:http://www.misterebby.com/previewtracks/phoenix.mp3] Water Phoenix (demo) (right click and save to download)
Amanda’ coffee grinder is often a cause for concern. So, recently I was in her café one one of those afternoons when the grinder stopped working, and she had to get another. It inspired this addition to my silly children’s stories for adults, which as you are aware, is ~amazing art~
________________________________
Greta the grinder moaned and groaned
For she was far too fond of complaining.
Some days she just stopped,
As some form of silent protesting.
Eventually, however, her protests grew too many
And the people began to grumble,
in need of some fresh coffee,
As their stomachs began to rumble.
So it happened that Greta the grinder
found herself sitting unused
As Garbo the Grinder sat right beside her
Munching and purring all afternoon.
And Greta no longer mumbled and grumbled,
But sat silently on the counter,
And watched the people be re-caffeinated,
Until the garbage man took her.
Lorcan was bored in a lecture and asked for entertainment, so I texted him this quick little story that I wrote on the spot. Obviously it is ~amazing art~
___________________
There once was a chameleon called Lorcan,
Who could change his skin to blend in,
But soon Lorcan realised,
That it’s far more fun to stand out in a crowd.
So Lorcan the chameleon began to change his skin,
No longer to try and merely fit in,
But to stand out in a crowd,
Feeling quite proud
With colours as eye-catching as could be.
