tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51955542008-07-24T20:43:13.897+08:00Simonnoreply@blogger.comBlogger377125This is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site, subject to copyright and fair use.tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-22453963596791853542008-07-24T20:29:00.000+08:002008-07-24T20:43:13.912+08:00

Somebody quite recently referred to this blog somewhere and called me a ‘tastemaker’. I was rather taken aback…for a few reasons. Firstly I think tucked away in the wilds of rather isolated Sanur, Bali, my days to being a tastemaker are long behind me (although I’m not unaware, and appreciative of the fairly dedicated listenership I had in my years on 95bFm and George FM....I’m quite proud of 19

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-62968134944340270672008-07-23T23:32:00.000+08:002008-07-23T23:48:22.824+08:00

We went to The Dark Knight tonight..wowee, a movie that actually lives up to it's hype. We've been trying to get tickets for days but it was worth it...I loved pretty much every cheek-slitting moment of it, but a couple of thoughts I was well pleased to see Maggie Gyllenhaal get blown into a million fragments. If there is one actress who makes, me cringe it's her..I don't know why, maybe it's

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-46319463091180706562008-07-18T16:21:00.000+08:002008-07-18T16:27:20.783+08:00

From the book "20 Common Questions About Islam" by a Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naik, which we were given in Penang: I guess I missed out... all those morning after big breakfasts seemed to have been in vain........... Technorati Tags: pork

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-73959271396082967102008-07-18T16:13:00.001+08:002008-07-18T16:13:41.253+08:00

This is huge news on the copyright front out of the EU...Term of protectionThe Commission adopted a proposal to extend the term of protection for performers and sound recordings to 95 years. The aim of the proposal is to bring performers' protection more in line with that already given to authors - 70 years after their death.It not only runs counter to what was their position a while back but

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-75869062417199847912008-07-12T22:04:00.000+08:002008-07-13T19:08:41.319+08:00

Of our two weeks on the road (almost), Jakarta was the highlight..simply because that was where the tethers were loosened...where I was allowed to indulge my desire to do what the others had been doing, and buy something for myself…Brigid sent me off to buy a travel iron. Not that I want a travel iron, mind, although they are handy wee things when on the road (Indonesian hotels get funny about

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-45494981983190436562008-07-09T14:21:00.000+08:002008-07-09T15:04:29.759+08:00

   I loved the grand entrance to Penang. The bridge across to the island was quite awe-inspiring, all 13.5km of it. Penang (the last time I was there was when I was 5) was much bigger than I thought it was. We almost missed it though…our intrepid navigator was a having a joyful moment with the passengers as I negotiated our way through the slightly complex freeway system and it was only a

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-49130605580688622092008-07-03T17:43:00.000+08:002008-07-03T20:09:39.002+08:00

  As you pass through Malaysia it’s hard not to be gobsmacked by the infrastructure. From the KLIA, to the Twin Towers to the bridge from Butterworth to Penang, it’s incredible and makes my home country look a little less developed than this developing nation. And then there are the roads. Grand sweeping highways, often cut through seemingly impassable terrain and sculpted out of the mountains

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-20967113117636008632008-07-02T14:27:00.000+08:002008-07-03T16:34:30.289+08:00

We went to Malaysia. On our third day there, we were lucky enough in Kuala Lumpur to bump into Peter Hoe. Brigid had written pages of notes for our ten days touring across Malaysia, most taken from the web, from TripAdvisor and the like. Some were not as helpful as we’d hoped they  might be (like the Dim Sim up by the Thai border, which was a bit of a drive from the Traders Hotel across from

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-63550346512770192082008-06-12T10:02:00.001+08:002008-06-12T10:15:13.832+08:00

On the way to Central Java I found myself sitting next to an American in his late twenties (from Idaho he said, in Futures he said). I asked him if he’d seen Hillary’s speech the day before. He looked at me and said “America’s not ready for a woman nor a damned black man”. Looking around the Garuda cabin I wondered how many people on the average United Airlines flight would have been able to

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-83325615230570333372008-06-12T08:48:00.001+08:002008-06-12T08:48:36.359+08:00

Found by my friend Blake:

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-15729484716867214732008-06-06T22:23:00.001+08:002008-06-07T12:26:53.205+08:00

We may not want to admit it, but the war in Iraq is now primarily about murder.So writes Chris Hedges in a gruesomely absorbing five page article in Salon this week which perhaps a examines reality of the war in Iraq far away from the vile claims of impending victory that emanate repeatedly from The White House and the drum beaters.These veterans give us a true narrative of the war -- one

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-26109905525780986522008-06-06T12:47:00.000+08:002008-06-06T13:02:00.630+08:00

Sometimes I need a warm cosy record. Sometimes I need a comforting old slab of plastic. All this new music is all very well, but now and again one needs to turn up the volume and sing along to tunes that marked an era, or provided the soundtrack to a time in one’s life that may or may not have been as rosy as you now remember it. With that in mind..... Item 1: Recently I rediscovered Massive

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-35764143486863878742008-06-06T08:38:00.001+08:002008-06-06T08:38:43.965+08:00

Brilliant

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-64469657530797971552008-06-03T11:51:00.001+08:002008-06-03T11:51:42.979+08:00

Am I odd for getting all warm and squidgy over this?

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-47987352357037868222008-06-03T09:16:00.001+08:002008-06-03T09:29:59.188+08:00

I quite like Bob Lefsetz, he nails it sometimes although his personal taste (Pat Benetar, The Eagles etc) is a bit bloated midwest for me at times.But I had to smile at this classic Americanism from today's post on Hong Kong:The signs are all in English. Our driver was fluent, he learned from watching American TV.I guess 100 years of British colonial administration, generations of English at

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-50377409603640298502008-05-30T11:22:00.000+08:002008-05-30T11:47:35.046+08:00

Sometimes a good dose of head scratching does not go amiss. Every day I have several “what the….” moments. I had one yesterday when I came across this story about US soldiers handing out coins implanted with the Lord’s gospel in Fallujah of all places. This being a week or so after another soldier was using the Koran for target practice. Update: it seems said Marine has had his hand smacked,

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-89753693301039091742008-05-26T22:28:00.001+08:002008-05-26T22:32:25.662+08:00

I didn't ever think I'd see something like this in my lifetime, this is incredible...I'm speechless.I may criticise some aspects of the USA but I'm still in awe of a nation that can do this.

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-66397083036714948882008-05-24T09:39:00.001+08:002008-05-24T09:41:23.712+08:00

Thank you: In fact, Flash-based web sites are quite possibly one of the most useful pieces of network technology around. Like heroin or microlights, they ensure that those who think it's a good idea aren't around to annoy us for too long.I think, like most people, when I see a Flash authored website loading, I just close the tab and move on.

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-3910170588210440482008-05-24T00:25:00.001+08:002008-05-25T18:49:42.608+08:00

About two months ago The Straits Times in Singapore…the governmental mouthpiece…ran what I guess they would consider a fairly safe piece canvassing the various US Presidential likelys (then at least) on China, and it’s emergence as a world superpower. This, naturally, is an important topic, but especially so in Asia, where China is now easily the dominant power...something Americans at almost

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-84815242246473680602008-05-18T10:37:00.001+08:002008-05-18T10:37:58.742+08:00

I know he's linked to me, so this could be seen as self serving (although it's not meant to be), but Chris Bourke's EMI reflections are absolutely brilliant, and I can't wait for part two. Bryan Staff and the late Sheran Ashley wrote a wonderful book some years back on the convoluted history of the NZ recording history, which really needs to be expanded on, with personal histories of this sort.

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-73820152708823270702008-05-17T18:46:00.000+08:002008-05-18T10:09:42.729+08:00

One of my cinematic joys is the work of pioneering Scottish director Bill Forsyth. I don’t know how many times I’ve watched Gregory’s Girl (ok, everybody had a thing for Claire Grogan back then and I wasn’t immune, don’t ask why now) or Comfort and Joy. I smile at the mere thought of Dickie Bird and the Glasgow Ice Cream wars. Sadly Hollywood chewed up Forsyth and this hugely influential director

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-26125730272012249932008-05-17T15:31:00.001+08:002008-05-17T15:32:22.876+08:00

I have two buddies who call themselves Nigel Horrocks. This doesn't confuse me at all as they are very different people.One used to manage a singer or two, including the wonderful Emma Paki, and owns the house / studio where Crowded House partially recorded Together Alone.The other used to inspire me for years on the radio with his justifiably legendary jazz shows, and is now the Online Editor

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-40198201844657050222008-05-17T13:09:00.001+08:002008-05-17T13:19:33.633+08:00

Yes its a minor thing to get excited about, but having watched this I thought I'd post it. I don't watch Chris Matthews often, and really have no idea who this other guy is, just another vacuous right wing slogan swinging radio talk show host, as we find the world over. But its kinda funny and I may make a point of catching Matthews more often.

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-68092655654307816312008-05-15T12:38:00.001+08:002008-05-15T12:38:52.365+08:00

I'm gonna just briefly point towards Chris Bourke's rather good Dusty Springfield interview over at his blog, which, as an aside, I feel the need to turn to most days...It dates back few years to Chris' days at Rip It Up magazine. One has to ask, when is someone going to give Murray Cammick a big fat advance to start pulling all this stuff together, both on-line and in print.

Simonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5195554.post-84649066135842797192008-05-12T22:03:00.000+08:002008-05-15T07:59:38.371+08:00

Peter McLennan over at Dub Dot Dash has posted about the impending changes at EMI, and mused as to whether they will affect the NZ operation. Whilst there are no clear answers to that question (at least publicly), the clear answer is that of course they will. EMI seems to be the first of the major labels with the balls to face the inevitable and part of that inevitability is that branches which

Simonnoreply@blogger.com