Mayday parade

Five months down, seven to go - and this one's been quite special, for two reasons, which I'll go into in a little bit.
First though, the bad stuff: if I can't find a job by the end of June, the Jobcentre will be forcing me onto one of their "work programmes", which I've been on in the past, and most of them have been pretty soul-destroying experiences, lasting about three months at a time - however this next one could last for two whole years. I can't stomach the idea of having to sit in a classroom with a bunch of people I don't know, being told stuff I already know by some snotty jobsearch tutor who will gladly remind me how much of a waste of space I am to society. I've been there already, too many times.


Rant over - now for the good stuff.


On the 23rd, it was a year since I made my third trip to the US, to Connecticut, where I met my long-time online friend Nicole (thesundoesrise on DA) face-to-face for the first time - what followed were four of the best weeks of my life. I met her family and friends, met up with two DA buddies (Shane Jensen and Leo, aka Ardwick), explored in and around Nicole's hometown of Branford, and also visited Atlantic City, Rhode Island, Boston, stayed with Shane's family for a few days on Long Island, visited lots of beaches, a zoo, an aquarium, and had more than one party plus karaoke in between. Too add to that, my brother Chris and his girlfriend also flew over for 2 weeks, and together we all set foot in New York City. I honestly haven't stopped thinking about that awesome time since I flew back, and I hope to get back there again.


That brings me onto the second special occasion of this month: in a complete switcheroo of last year's trip, Nicole jetted all the way here to the north-east of England to visit me and my brother, for two weeks, and as I write she is still with us, however in three days she'll be leaving, something neither of us are looking forward to. Her time here has been awesome - I introduced her to my family, took her for walks around my hometown and in the Weardale countryside, and we also visited Durham, Newcastle, the Metro Centre in Gateshead, Bishop Auckland, Darlington and the beach and aquarium in Tynemouth. I've really enjoyed having Nicole here, and it goes without saying that I'll miss her very much when she leaves - but I'm not thinking about that right now!

Me and Nicky in Connecticut, USA, May 2011

Me and Nicky in Bishop Auckland, UK, May 2012

Last but not least, as always, a little bit of artwork for you - a trade picture that I did with my good Scottish buddy Andy (aka Granitoons on DA):

"Poker Birds" (Pete/Squawks/artwork © me, Stan/Lonnie © granitoons.deviantart.com)

Speaking of DA, I am no longer known as "appleyard86" on there - DA recently gave deviants the option to change their usernames, so I'm now known on there as "BluebottleFlyer", to bring it in line with my usernames on other accounts. Plus, I never liked the "appleyard86" username anyway.

That's all for May - hopefully June will be fine, and not flaming. 

April showers

Aye, it's been April, and just as the old saying goes, there's been April showers - it feels like for most of this month that it's been chucking it down, and that mini heatwave at the end of March now feels like just a distant memory. Weather needs to get warmer, enough said.
Don't need to say anything about jobsearch really, except same old same old - although someone did actually bother to send me a rejection letter for once. Small comfort and all that.
Had a couple of minor blips this month too, and surprise surprise, both were money related. I'm sick of everything constantly going up, how far does it have to go up till it comes down again? Or will it ever go down again? In this day and age, I highly doubt it.
Anyway, rant over, now for the good stuff. My only major bit of travelling this month was to South Shields, first time there since 2005. Parts of it have changed, but the beach looks as great as it always has.
I wasn't alone on that trip, I met up with Richard Alnwick (aka DragonRichard on DA) for the second time, as well as his girlfriend Charlotte. It was alright on the whole, though I have to admit that trying to have a conversation with them both was canny hard work. Not their fault though, talking to people has never been one of my strong points.
Art-wise I've been banging out those artworks like I usually do - and this month I also entered my character Flyer into a contest known as WINNINGisforLOSERS, or WIFL, it's a Smash Bros style contest on DA which has been going for a few years now, and I'd been meaning to enter it for some time now. It's 6 rounds, and Flyer has so far managed to make it through to Round 4. Of course I'll let you know how it all goes in the May blog, but in the meantime, if you want to see the action and see how WIFL works, just click here: http://winningisforlosers.deviantart.com
There has been one thing on my mind all of this month, and long before that - as I type this, it is only 3 weeks till Nicole comes over for 2 weeks, all the way from the east coast of the USA. I've been thinking up places to take her, and I'm really hoping I'll be free for those 2 weeks, as well as the weather improving for then, but above all else, I just want Nicole to have a great time while she's here. I honestly can't wait, and I know she can't either.
Last but not least, I'll leave you with some artwork, as always, and this one was part of an art trade I did between myself and my mate from Scotland, Andy (aka Granitoons on DA):

 "Poker Birds" - Stan the Crow & Lonnie © granitoons.deviantart.com

Gigging it

Recently it was a bit of an anniversary - on April 11 it was 6 years since I went to see Fear Factory at Newcastle University, and it got me thinking about all the gigs that I've been to - so I'm gonna share them with you.


09/12/2004 - The Mad Capsule Markets - Newcastle University
It took me until I was 18 to get to my first proper gig - I'd been a fan of these Japanese punk/metal/techno noiseniks for a couple of years at that point, and when I heard they were coming to Newcastle, I had to be there. Because it was my first gig, it was a bit nerve-wracking being in the venue with so many people, and my clothes choice was a disaster too (baseball cap and tracksuit jacket, I didn't know any better), and I also didn't manage to get a decent spot in the crowd. All the signs of a gig newbie.
I ended up enjoying it though, it was definitely a first - TMCM were a blast from start to finish, playing mostly stuff from their albums OSC-DIS, 010 and their then new CiSTm K0nFLiqT, and there wasn't one bad song.


Support bands: 
Deadpad - uninspiring local industrial band.
McQueen - decent all girl rock band with a shade of Foo Fighters in their sound; bought their "Like I Care" EP at the gig.

The Mad Capsule Markets, Newcastle University, 09/12/2004

19/03/2006 - Fightstar - Newcastle University
Early '06 was when I got into Fightstar, and having been very impressed by their debut album "Grand Unification", I was definitely up for seeing them live.
I made sure to arrive in the queue much earlier this time in order to get a spot closer to the front, which I did - I was canny unprepared for the all the moshing going on! I did have better clothes this time, though.
Fightstar were absolutely spot on, of course they played mostly "Grand Unification" songs, but also slipped a B-side or two in there. Most memorable moment was the finale of "Palahniuk's Laughter", where they had members of support band Reuben join them on stage.
This gig was also my first experience of autograph hunting - braved the cold outside for a while with a few others to attempt to meet with the band, and it paid off - got my pictures took with Charlie Simpson (singer), Al Westaway (guitar) and Omar Abidi (drums), as well as all of their autographs. Quite a way to end the night.


Support bands:
Brigade - featuring Charlie Simpson's bro Will on vocals, they were playing as I came in, and I was pretty impressed. Bought their album "Lights" not long afterwards.
Last Days of April - somewhat bland Swedish indie rock.
Reuben - this was the gig that got me into this band. I'd only heard one song by them previously, which I thought was good, but they completely blew me away live. I've since bought almost all of their albums.

Charlie Simpson of Fightstar, Newcastle University, 19/03/2006

11/04/2006 - Fear Factory - Newcastle University
The aforementioned gig, another highly anticipated one - TMCM and Fightstar are heavy, but Fear Factory are a lot heavier. Couldn't wait to hear FF's industrial metal grooves live, and they certainly did not disappoint, they were on fire throughout, and because this was part of their "15 Years of Fear" tour, they pulled out all the big hits such as "Descent", "Martyr", "Self Bias Resistor", and climaxed in style with their signature song "Replica".
I also got to meet up with the band's singer Burton C Bell afterwards, really down-to-earth dude.


Support bands:
Misery Index - very heavy death-metal sounding band, even though the sound was a bit muddy, they weren't bad at all.
Breed 77 - a metal band from Gibraltar who inccorporate flamenco into their sound, pretty good, and they had some catchy stuff.

 Fear Factory, Newcastle University, 11/04/2006

Me and Fear Factory singer Burton C. Bell

30/08/2006 - King Edward/Red Method/No Libido - The Sportsman, Bishop Auckland
An all-local trio of bands this time round - I had a personal connection to this one, as I was schoolfriends with the lead singer of Red Method, he invited me to come and see his band play.
King Edward were alright, they had some nifty tunes but they didn't really stand out. Red Method on the other hand were brilliant, they played catchy yet heavy post-hardcore, and despite the small crowd there was some crowd-surfing attempted!
However, I thought the best of the trio was No Libido, a female-fronted punk band who had some very mosh-worthy tunes - bought their EP from them that night.
I'm guessing none of these bands are around anymore, but maybe that's how some of them are meant to be - short-term highs.

 King Edward, The Sportsman, 30/08/2006

  Red Method, The Sportsman, 30/08/2006

No Libido, The Sportsman, 30/08/2006

09/10/2006 - Fightstar - Northumbria University
Having enjoyed the first Fightstar gig so much, it was only natural that I had to go and see them again, and they were just as brilliant as they were first time round. Notably different was the venue, it was a little bigger than the university, which made it even better. Also got to meet up with the band a second time.


Support bands:
The Receiving End Of Sirens - solid American post-hardcore, I liked the dual vocalist set-up they had going on.
Oceansize - alternative/prog rock, they had some good moments, but some of their songs dragged in a bit too long. Also, their singer didn't do himself any favours by insulting some of the crowd.

 Fightstar, Northumbria University, 09/10/2006

Me with Fightstar's Charlie Simpson

13/03/2007 - Deftones - Newcastle Academy
Had to pull a few strings to actually get to go to this one, and I had to catch a bus at stupid o'clock to get back home from it - but it was worth it, because there was no way I was going to miss this band.
Found out the hard way just how crazy those mosh-pits can get - I was at the front, right in the middle, and when the Deftones came on and ripped straight into "Be Quiet and Drive", I almost got crushed. I had to clear out of the way in the end, but I didn't let that uncomfortable experience ruin the gig for me.
It goes without saying that the Deftones were amazing from start to finish, they played most of their classics such as "My Own Summer", as well as stuff from their then current album "Saturday Night Wrist". They finished off in explosive style with "7 Words".
Let's just say that my attempt to get their autographs didn't go to plan, however.


Support bands:
Mnemic - French/Belgian/Scandinavian industrial metal band, similar to Fear Factory, and also pretty good.

Deftones' Chino Moreno, Newcastle Academy, 13/03/2007

27/05/2007 - Biffy Clyro - Newcastle University
Anyone who knows me well will know that I'm a huge Biffy Clyro fan, and at the time of this gig I'd gotten into them over the last few months, so of I course I had to see them live. I wasn't alone this time either, my brother Chris tagged along too, and this was his first gig.
Biffy are known for being an awesome live act, and they were exactly that - the amount of energy they put into their performance pretty much blew my socks off. They had originally been going to play mostly songs from their then latest album "Puzzle", but because the release had been delayed, they instead played a handful of old faves such as "Justboy", and "Questions and Answers", though they did play one or two "Puzzle" tunes as well. Best moment was when, to mine and Chris' surprise, they played a song that neither of us expected to hear - "There's No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake", which is Chris' fave Biffy song. Awesome finale too, with "Glitter and Trauma".
Didn't bother to go after autographs, myself and Chris just wanted our hotel beds after that - but we were exhausted for good reason.


Support bands:
Frank Turner - ex-Million Dead singer, it was just him and his guitar, and he was brilliant, his voice really hit hard, and his songs tell quite some stories. Got his autograph and spoke to him after the gig, really cool down-to-earth fella.
yourcodenameis:milo - I'd heard about this Newcastle band before the gig, but didn't know what they sounded like - wish I'd heard them sooner, because their heavy, space-rockish sound blew me away. Bought their latest album there and then.

Biffy Clyro, Newcastle University, 27/05/2007

09/08/2007 - Eddie & the Hot Rods - Crook Football Club
I remember watching an episode of TOTP 2 a while back, and a band called Eddie & the Hot Rods were featured on it, playing their hit "Do Anything You Wanna Do" on the show way back in 1977. Didn't think I'd actually get to see that same band play in my hometown, but they did.
It's a funny story as to how I actually ended up at the gig - someone I know from my karaoke days (who out of respect will remain nameless) is actually friends with the band, and he helped to get them the gig in Crook. Anyway, he told me about it, so I got a ticket and went along.
Now, to be honest, I'm not really a huge fan of 70's rock, I prefer more modern, later stuff - but I did enjoy the gig, the band really put their all into it, and their singer Barrie Masters might have been in his 60's, but he sure didn't look or act like it. Of course, "Do Anything You Wanna Do" was the standout for me.
I actually spoke to the band and got their autographs, they were a canny bunch - and they even popped into my then local for a drink!


Support bands:
I didn't catch the support band, but apparently I didn't miss much.

Eddie & the Hot Rods, Crook Football Club, 09/08/2007

11/11/2007 - Biffy Clyro - Newcastle Academy
Just like with Fightstar, I just had to see the Biffy again - and I know they say lightning doesn't strike twice, but it did in this case, because they were just on fire throughout. They also had a more elaborate light-show this time, which really added to the atmosphere. They played a lot more "Puzzle" songs this time round, while still slipping in the classics too. There were many highlights including a beautiful rendition of "Machines" with just the singer Simon Neil, his acoustic guitar, a spotlight and loads of fans (me included) singing along. I recall they ended it with "Glitter and Trauma" again.
I did decide to autograph hunt this time - and it took another fan banging on the tour bus window to get the band to come out and see us! They were good about it though, and not only did I get their autographs but I got pictures with all three of them too. All in all, it was a crackin' night.


Support bands:
The Matches - American pop-rock band all dressed in matching red outfits - didn't think too much of them, even though they were canny energetic.
¡Forward, Russia! - similar to the Matches, though a little more off-kilter. Aside from one song, and though they also dressed in matching outfits, they weren't really that memorable.

 Biffy Clyro, Newcastle Academy, 11/11/2007

Me with Biffy Clyro's Simon Neil

22/05/2009 - Eddie & the Hot Rods - Crook Football Club
The Hot Rods decided to return to Crook for another gig 2 years after the first one, so I thought I might as well go and see them again - and it was more or less the same as last time, a good solid performance, with a mix of originals such as "Telephone Girl" and covers such as "Born To Be Wild". However, I heard afterwards that they probably wouldn't be coming back in the future, because apparently the sound operator made such a poor job with the mixing (this happened the first time too). It's a shame, but at least I was able to see them both times.
Somehow, I ended up going into two local pubs with my friend who's friends with the band, plus the band themselves - ended up having an interesting chat with the Hot Rods' singer Barrie Masters. It was a bit of a surreal, but interesting experience on the whole.


Support bands:
Propaganda - a cover band, who I didn't really think very much of - however they did cover a couple of Biffy Clyro songs, which was a plus.

Eddie & the Hot Rods, Crook Football Club, 22/05/2009

So there you have it, that's all the gigs I've been to - no idea if I'll ever get to another one any time soon, but if I do, you'll hear about it here.

Not-so-mad March

Well, the first bit or so of this month was a bit mad...I'm not gonna go into what it was, but me and my brother were quite worried about something, and not surprisingly, it was money related - we got it cleared up though.
Jobsearch-wise, same old, different month. Nothing on the horizon, and I don't hold much hope of that ever changing, to be honest.
Still thinking about going back over to America - it is always there, always on my mind, and I'm not gonna stop thinking about it until I get back there. Whether it's next year or 2014 is another matter.
Had an unexpected heatwave this past week, a rarity over here, so I took the opportunity to go exploring, taking walks up a walking trail near where I live called the Deerness Valley Way - I'd been up there many times before, but only so far along it - and I decided to explore further along it, which turned out to be very worthwhile indeed, as I came across a side trail that led down to a very secluded forest. In there I also came across some sort of hand-made bench, it was like I came across some secret hideout or something. I have to admit, I felt like a kid again doing that.
I also walked further along the main trail to the village of Waterhouses - really quiet place surrounded by a beautiful view, and a nice getaway from all the bustle of the town. I'll definitely be going back there again sometime, and there's still more of the trail to explore too.


Here's some pics I took out on my travels:

Now for the obligatory artwork bit - and it seems I've gotten a little spaced out:

Touch wood, April will be a month without any major hiccups - and it's also another month closer to May, which is going to be canny good.

Then and now

It's funny how things just have a way of reminding you of past memories.
Today, I came across a video of Muse playing "Plug In Baby" on Top of the Pops, exactly 11 years ago today. Not only was that the first song I ever bought, but that was also when I started taping episodes of TOTP to watch again, I built up quite a collection of them too - that's besides the point though.
It got me thinking back to what I was doing back then, back in March 2001 - at the time I was in my fourth year of secondary school, and on work experience at two banks in Bishop Auckland. Round about that time was also when I'd started to get into rock music, and was starting to slowly get away from all the pop/dance stuff I'd been listening to up until then.
It really is weird, looking back - I don't think I ever gave a thought to what I'd be doing 11 years from that point. I certainly never thought I'd get my own place, get to know the people that I've gotten to know, get pretty good at artwork or visit America 3 times before the age of 30, that's for sure. I also never thought that I'd start to realise that a lot of stuff in life isn't as clear-cut as it seems, though pretty much the whole of secondary school was the whole "coming of age" deal that everyone goes through.
That's life though. Stuff has a way of happening that's never the same for any one person.

February stars

Well, I'm glad to say that February on the whole was a lot better than January - those rent issues myself and Chris were having, they're more or less sorted now, it's just a matter of continuing to pay our way each week till those arrears are cleared (they're definitely not over £1000 now).
Also good is that the weather seems to be getting milder. It started off very bitter cold at the start of the month, and aye, we did get snow, but thankfully it didn't last as long as what the papers reckoned, in their usual sensationalised way.
Look at the previous blog entry for my thoughts of Valentine's/Slush Day - 'nuff said about that.
Only trip out anywhere I had this month was a look through to Darlington, Chris tagged along too, and he promptly went on a retro game spree, including picking up a copy of a classic Master System game "Action Fighter" for not very much. Meantime I discovered a nifty little art shop.
I've also started to transfer some of my vast collection of VHS tapes into DVD, using my grandma's DVD/VHS combo player. Those tapes are piled up in my bedroom cupboard, they have mostly episodes of Top of the Pops/TOTP 2 on them, as well as a few cartoons, and they really need to go. However, I also want to upload some of these to Youtube if I can, but Windows Movie Maker isn't playing ball, it refuses to save the files after I've edited them. TECHNOLOGY!!!


Last but not least, a little bit of artwork:

Came up with this little monster character last year, and I recently drew him again for a contest on deviantART. He's got no name, but I'd like to draw him more.


Anyway, peace out, and all the best for March.

Valentine's Day

I'm sure most people will be aware that today is Valentine's Day - that day where everybody gets loved up, a boy or girl may pluck up the feelings to declare their true feelings for their crush, where some couples may tie the knot,or where some couples may remind themselves how much they mean to each other, with a gift or a night out, etc.
To me, it's just an annoyance. I won't be the first or the last to say this, but this day has never been kind to me, and in recent years I've come to the realisation that the true meaning of Valentine's Day is not declaring your love for someone, it's just a day for all the card shops, supermarkets, wedding planners and the like to have a bonanza, to fill their pockets with cash that will come from all the useless tat that will inevitably be bought by anyone who's blinded by the "occasion".
It doesn't take one day to celebrate your love for someone special...that's something that should be done all year round. It's like that famous saying, "a dog is for life, not just for Christmas" - the same applies to romance.
However, I do have some heart...while I'm not a fan of people spending ridiculous amounts on throwaway romantic gestures just for the sake of one day, I do like to make a bit of artwork for the day every year - because it's free and it's fun. So here it is, and this is as slushy as I'm prepared to get.

To those of you who are loved up: have a good Valentine's.
For the rest: have a good, normal day.