I Heart AU

We have a new home - iheartau.com/blog

2008-08-15T02:17:00.000-07:00

If you've been wondering just where on earth the AU blog went, this is the time for answers. Over the past while our web designer Andy and graphic designed Stuart have been beavering away on a fancy shmancy new look for the AU website. It's now live, go have a wee nosey.

This blog is now being moved over to iheartau.com/blog, so bookmark that bad boy.

O RLY?

2008-07-08T05:38:00.000-07:00

The brand new issue is out now, and unlike the weather, it is a scorcher, shaping up nicely with these fantastic folk all inside
..........
PRIMAL SCREAM
Bobby Gillespie tells us about the great survivors’ past, present and beautiful future

CSS
Lovefoxxx on their second album, celebrity coupledom and Michael Jackson

EVAN DANDO
Alt-rock icon on becoming a reluctant mainstream star, oh and those pesky drugs

BLACK KIDS
Reggie Youngblood demonstrates his Partie piece

ALBERT HAMMOND JR.
Why he’s still got a world to learn

SPARKS
Pop’s Brothers Beyond, 21 albums in and still going strong

MOGWAI
Stuart Braithwaite on their new album and imminent Belfast date

+

History Lessons:
Tom Waits – Grand Weepers and Grim Reapers

Flashback:
Ronaldo – The 1998 World Cup Final mystery

A To Z of Cults:
Sect appeal

Respect Your Shelf:
The novels of Chuck Palahniuk

In The Studio:
The inside track on Friendly Fires debut album

Classic Album:
Nothing’s Shocking by Jane’s Addiction

Let’s Get Metaphysical:
‘Club Tropicana’ by Wham

Incoming: Jaguar Love / Ratatat / Dodos

5 To 1: Unconvincing Irishmen / Moody Celebrities
Ironic Iconic – Rod Stewart

The Last Word: Cut Copy

REVIEWS
>ALBUMS: Eine Kleine Nacht Musik / Beck / The Dudley Corporation / Ratatat / Wolf Parade / The Subways / Tricky / The Hold Steady / Albert Hammond Jr. / Weezer / The Dodos / Black Kids / Sea Wolf / Jay Reatard / Jaguar Love / Biffy Clyro / Primal Scream

>LIVE: Download special / Morrissey / My Bloody Valentine / Radiohead / Iggy Pop / Bonnie ‘Prince Billy’

>UNSIGNED: Autumn Owls / Nanook / Lines Drawing Circles / Sparks Fly

SUBBACULTCHA
Most Wanted: Gigs, Films, Games, Arts, Comics.
Back Of The Net: The funniest YouTube videos.
WeirdWideWeb. Story Of The Video feat. Mystery Jets.
Get Your Clicks: Movie memorabilia.
In Pictures: Pics from AU’s 5th Birthday @ Sandino’s, Derry / Topman Secret Gig @ The Black Box, Belfast.

WORD UPS: The National / Panama Kings / Los Campesinos! / Sonny J / Fight Like Apes / trans ‘08 / But where for art thou Chris Martin?

AU Is 5

2008-06-19T02:01:00.000-07:00

Yeo, we celebrated out fifth birthday by decamping to Derry and throwing a massive party featuring 15 of the finest bands from Northern Ireland. It was an immense day. The organisation was spot on, big shout out to Homegirl Promotions for all their help and thanks to Sandino's for letting us take over for the day. Stephen McCauley's Electric Mainline radio show recorded all the sets from the main room for future broadcast, which is awesome.

Everyone played a blinder and there are too many highlights to mention. You can check out a great review of the day on the ATL website.

Can't believe it's been five years already. Onwards and upwards.

trans = sexual

2008-06-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

Yeah, so they're gonna hate us for the pun we've made as the subject header here, but the truth is that this years trans festival is a sheer delight of goodness. We were at the launch part for it last week, which was cool. For those of you who don't know about it, trans is an annual festival that takes place in Belfast, utilising various venues throughout the city, and having its hub based at The Waterfront Hall.

This is the third year of the fest, and once again they've managed to improve and develop things significantly. There are a slew of big name acts (Los Campesinos!, Andy Weatherall, London Elektricity, Bonde Do Role...) a broad smattering of the finest regional talent (Fighting With Wire, Cashier No.9, Two Door Cinema Club...) and, more importantly, a host of cool, unique signature events.

Our favourite signature event of this year is the cleverly named Indie Takeaway. It's basically a gig featuring some fine local acts, but the twist is that you are presented with a menu of the tracks you are set to hear. You then select the tracks that you would like to take home with you, and they're burnt on to a CD as mp3's at the end of the night. It's a great idea that is only topped by the sheer amount of puns they have managed to fit in the programme blurb - check it out here.

There are a bazillion cool things happening over the course of the four weeks, plus they're all well affordable so there can be no excuses. The whole shebang kicks off on July 14 and runs till August 10. We'll be keeping you abreast of all the goings on throughout, plus we're co-promoting the opening night which features Los Campesinos!, Kowalski, Two Door Cinema Club and Cat Malojian. Good times on the way.

I Like That

2008-06-10T02:07:00.000-07:00

The lovely new mag is out now and as it is our fifth birthday issue it is a biggy packed full with lovely goodies like a great big present waiting to be unwrapped.

It sounds a little something like this...
_______________________________

MGMT
We talk to the most talked about band of 2008

OPPENHEIMER
Belfast duo administer 2nd course of electro-pop therapy

THE HOLD STEADY
Lessons in rock legacies with Brooklyn’s blue-collar heroes

JAPE
Richie Egan’s rites of passage.

HAR MAR SUPERSTAR
Quite lovely, really

MY MORNING JACKET
Are they about to plunge into the big time?

+

The New Irish Noise: AU investigates the swell in Irish noiseniks

History Lessons: Dead Kennedys - Raising the stakes and falling hard

Flashback: A cunning plan is hatched, the TV debut of Blackadder

Let’s Get Metaphysical: ‘True’ by Spandau Ballet

A To Z of Tyrants: An alphabetical excursion to bad bastardville

Respect Your Shelf: Batman graphic novels

In The Studio: The inside track on the making of And So I Watch You From Afar’s debut album

Classic Album: Live And Dangerous by Thin Lizzy

Incoming: Lykke Li / We Smoke Fags / Dananananaykroyd

5 To 1: Home haircuts / Celebrity names

The Last Word: Operator Please

REVIEWS

ALBUMS: My Morning Jacket / Ladytron / The Vinny Club / Vetiver / Halves / Errors / Johnny Foreigner / Oppenheimer / Born Ruffians / Cat Malojian / White Denim / The Zutons / Joan As Police Woman / Fred / Flying Lotus / Gama Bomb / The Chameleons

LIVE: Public Enemy / Frightened Rabbit / The Raconteurs / Caribou / Animal Collective / The Kills / Dinosaur Jr. / Howlin Rain

UNSIGNED: Boathouse / Colenso Parade / The Kinetiks / Cruz

SUBBACULTCHA
Most Wanted: Gigs, Films, Games, Arts, Comics.
Back Of The Net: The funniest YouTube videos. WeirdWideWeb. Story Of The Video feat. Six Star Hotel. Get Your Clicks: T-shirt websites.
In Pictures: Pics from Broken Social Scene @ Vicar Street, Dublin / Spiritualized @ Mandela Hall, QUBSU, Belfast.

WORD UPS: Mudhoney / Gama Bomb / Evan Dando / The Vinny Club / Bon Iver / Tom McShane / Escape Act / Caribou / Keith Harris / But where for art thou Robbie Williams?

Beck In Action

2008-05-20T02:46:00.000-07:00

So, the first taste of the new Beck record has been put out in the form of 'Chemtrails', which you can hear at www.beck.com and myspace.com/beck. It's total psych-pop and sounds like something straight out of a drugged up Sixties soirée. He's been working with the producer Danger Mouse on the album, which is due out early this summer.

Apparently, 'Chemtrails' isn't going to be released as a single, so it might be a truer reflection of the sort of thing we can expect from the new record. Still, Beck is capable of turning out super pop hits, and we wouldn't mind hearing another one of those from him.

Let is know what you think of the single over on the AU Forum

Even more Fighting With Wire excitement

2008-05-16T04:32:00.000-07:00

The better those Derry boys Fighting With Wire do, the more nerdily excited we get. Watching MTV2 last night and up pops their video for 'Everyone Needs A Nemesis' at Number 4 in the MySpace chart. They were described as 'scruffy' on the ticker text that runs along the screen, which was pretty funny. If you've got a minute pop over to and give them a vote.

They've also been garnering a bit of coverage on the beeb too, from the One Big Weekend festival that they played at. Zane Lowe is continuing to give them massive props, which is excellent, and apparently they've been getting a fair bit of airplay on Radio 1. Here's a bit of footage of the interview (which we found over on the Smalltown America blog, plus a link to a few tracks from their set on the day.

A few live videos can be found here.

AUTV: Two Door Cinema Club

2008-05-15T03:19:00.000-07:00

We recently posted up the excellent Brian Philip Davis directed video for Two Door Cinema Club's 'Undecover Martyn' track. It's ace, dig into the archive there and check it the flip out. To follow this up, and to further extend out massive love for the dead ace Bangorians, we got the band down to the NvTv studio to have a chat with AU Magazine Editor Francis Jones, and to play a few songs live as well.

It's a brilliant wee session and is well worth investing thirty minutes of your very valuable time in. And seeing as you're reading this now, you may as well carry on and watch it below...

AUTV: The Flaws

2008-05-15T02:58:00.000-07:00

Things have been uncharacteristically quiet on the blog front this past fortnight, this is due to the finishing and arrival of the latest issue (see it there in the right hand column, isn't it lovely?), plus we were doing a load of TV stuff. All will be revealed in the next few posts.

First up, can we draw your attention to this delightful live session with Irish indie-rockers The Flaws. They swung by the NvTv studios for this stripped down set ahead of their gig in Belfast, and very lovely they were too.

Five To One: Old Skool Games

2008-05-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

With The Best Game Ever (copyright: everybody), Grand Theft Auto IV just released, we thought it was time to tip our hats to the thumb-botherers of yesteryear. Get the Sodastream on the go, dig out your Global Hypercolour attire and enjoy...

5. Streets of Rage
An ultra-violent side-scroller for the Sega Megadrive, Steets of Rage combines all the best that computer games can offer; the ability to 'accidentally' grab your team-mates, slam them into the ground, and then S&M bitch attackers with a big lead pipe. Remember the ever-present fear you'll accidentally jab the C button and have to wait five minutes while the animated police arrive and nuke the empty screen with their rocket launchers? Precious days when a 64 bit console was the stuff of a madman's dream.

4. Super Mario World
Mario had it all. The unassuming Italian American plumber with the wee hat and rather gay moustache really came into his own on the SNES. By adding a flying cape and the Deepthroat-inspired gobbling dinosaur Yoshi, those Japanese compu-fiends made the most playable game ever. With something like a hundred levels, it seemed massive when it came out in the early 90s - causing God knows how many fits and cases of extreme short sightedness when it did.

3. Bubble Bobble
Could it all have been so simple? Nowadays kids are only satisfied by world-spanning bloodbaths where 'points' and end-of-level baddies give way to tearing enemies' faces off and online nerd-offs. Back in the day, two dayglo dinosaurs boking up bubbles were all that we needed. The music is still the anthem of a lost generation, bringing tears to eyes and choked "do-do-do-do-do"s to their lips. It had so many screens to complete that Nintendo had a phoneline to ring if you completed it - a monster.

2. Street Fighter
As Survivor sang, "It's the thrill of the fight." And Street Fighter 2 is chock full o' bust-ups. What made it a classic were the wee things: the people who stand behind the fighters ding that "fist-goes-up, fist-goes-down" thing (man, they're into it) or Chun-Li's happy-as-Larry victory dance. Aside from the blistering ruckus on hand, the character voices alone were a symphony of coolness: close your eyes and listen to "Tiiiger uppercut!" and "Hadouken!" (not the band) - it's like being in the womb.

1. Paperboy
The concept sounds ridiculous: let's make a computer game for kids, about child labour in suburbia - but the result was explosive. it made paper routes seem like an assault on Dieppe with barking dogs, men with hoses and bits of brick lying in the path of the valiant deliverer of good tidings. Other ideas from the same stable, like 'Altarboy' and 'Chimneysweep' never made it...

Oh Yeah, they're taking it over

2008-04-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

Last week AU attended the launch of the Oh Yeah Sessions '08, a Carling sponsored album consisting of original recordings from finest of Northern Irish talent. The launch party took place at the Oh Yeah centre, and featured live performances from Cashier No.9, Kowalski And So I Watch You From Afar and The Jane Bradfords. The event had a superb turnout, and it was heartwarming to see so much of the NI music community in the same place at the same time.

That's the background, since then the album has been getting a significant amount of airplay in our office. Each of the tracks was recorded at the new Start Together Studio, which is housed in the centre, with the exception of the bonus songs from In Case Of Fire and David Holmes. The stand out tracks we're especially digging are mojoFURY 'Colour Of The Bear', Panama Kings 'Where's Your Sense Of Urgency' and LaFaro 'Mr. Heskey', though to be honest there isn't a single duff number from the ten.

You can buy the record now from HMV and Phoenix Records, and as the CD is acting as a fundraiser for the worthy Oh Yeah cause, we suggest you do so now.

Japed Crusader

2008-04-19T05:41:00.000-07:00

We had a busy week at AU (they all are though). Photo shoots and interviews in Dublin, working on our fifth birthday celebrations, plus a few new things in the offing that we'll reveal soon.

A highlight was a passing encounter involving a bicycle and the rush for a bus, where Richie Egan, AKA Jape, gave AU a copy of the new album 'Ritual'. Just had a wee spin at it and the first impressions are great, reckon it will be a solid staple of the AU Stereo for the next while. It's exciting to have such a good record coming out of Ireland right now. The album doesn't have the previous single 'Floating' on it (which was used during the final episode of Skins last week), which was a bit surprising, but the fact that it can be left off with ease just goes to show how much strong material he has.

You'll more about the album and from Richie in future issues of AU, in the meantime here's the video for 'Floating'.

Jape is awesome live too, so if you're in Dublin on Monday April 21 then make sure you're at the Crawdaddy to represent.

Free CD funtime music sharing type thang.

2008-04-16T08:21:00.000-07:00

Do you love to share music? Would you like the opportunity to introduce people to tunes and bands they might not have heard before? Or maybe you just want to encourage others to give your guilty pleasures a chance.

Whatever your motives are, we're here to try and help make this happen. Remember when you used to painstakingly craft mixtapes for your friends, timing it right so everything fitted on a one side of a TDK90 without cutting any songs short. (right now I bet younger readers are saying 'what's a TDK90'?) It was worth it all to turn your friends onto new music. Ah, good times.

AU is bringing the mixtape tradition back, this time in the form of mix CDs. We'll be letting members of our Last.fm group send in a compilation, which we'll then duplicate and distribute to our members.

Sounds cool doesn't it? Go join the IHeartAU Last.fm group to get involved

Video: Fighting With Wire - Everyone Needs A Nemesis

2008-04-16T02:15:00.001-07:00

It's no secret that we love Derry trio Fighting With Wire. A lot. If you don't have a copy of their debut album 'Man Vs Monster' yet, then away off and buy one now (they're available from their UK label Smalltown America).

They were recently signed by humungoid American label Atlantic, who will be putting put the album (via Photo Finish Records) later this year. We want FWW to conquer the US, and with any luck they will.

This is the first video to have been made for the new record, and it's a wee belter.

Five To One: Magicians

2008-04-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

It's that time again, and this time we cast our educated eye on the legends (and losers) of magic. From supermodel wives to chilly endurance stunts, these guys really know how to live. And, in one memorable case, die.

5. Paul Daniels
Starting his career on infamous British light entertainment (read ‘lowbrow nonsense’) programme The Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club, Daniels was every bit the working man’s conjuror: with a disarming manner, and a deft hand at all the usual pub-related card tricks, he won over the nation with the help of his parroty love interest Debbie Magee. A staple of Eighties TV, Daniels now acts as full-time home help for Emu, the widow of late entertainer Rod Hull.

4. David Copperfield
A man of such staggering egoism that he bought the Batmobile from Tim Burton’s 1989 version and married willowy supermodel Claudia Schiffer, all while making very big magic tricks for his stunned audiences. His audacious stunts included making the Statue Of Liberty disappear (impressive), and ‘going into’ the Bermuda Triangle (not as impressive). Now regularly appearing on double bills with Jason Donovan in Bognor and Margate.

3. David Blaine
Sleepy-head Blaine grabbed the world’s attention with that ‘floaty feet’ trick everyone did in Primary School. Now famous for undertaking death-defying tasks including freezing and starving himself, which aren’t so much magic as a bit stupid and dangerous. David is currently preparing to walk through the core of the sun next summer. We wish him luck.

2. Penn and Teller
Some of the most genuinely funny and shocking magic ever to hit our TV screens came from the twisted minds of this Yank duo. Finding a home on late night Channel 4, they blended anarchic humour with genuinely close-to-the-bone stunts, such as catching pistol bullets in their teeth or juggling broken bottles. Penn and Teller rebranded themselves as Jemini and lost out with nul points in 2003’s Eurovision Song Contest. Keep trying, lads!

1. Tommy Cooper
Never has magic been in better (or worse) hands then when Tommy Cooper took to the stage: nothing sets up an impressive trick better than farting it up three times first. He made the Fez a stylish look and invented the great ‘pull a ladder from between your legs’ sketch. Extra kudos for Cooper actually dying during a performance, doing what he did best – and the crowd were laughing right until the curtain came down.

Cut Copy = Ultra Brilliance

2008-04-08T02:26:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has ventured within a three mile radius of AU HQ in the past few weeks will have been pummelled in the ears by the new Cut Copy album 'In Ghost Colours'. The reason for this is simple - it's ultra brilliant. If the album was a washing powder, it would be the kind that possesses magical qualities that make your whites more than just 'brilliant white', they'll be 'ultra brilliant white'. If you would like a more easily understood explanation of what the album sounds like, this isn't the place to find it. You will have to just buy the record the moment it comes out.

In the meantime, enjoy their video for 'Lights & Music'.

Old Men Over The Hill

2008-04-08T02:07:00.000-07:00

This news was announced yesterday to the sound of a million grown women screaming, and a collective shrug of indifference from everyone else. There have been many high profile reformations of late - My Bloody Valentine, Rage Against The Machine, Pixies - but now the reunion to top them all has been announced. Yes, you guessed it, New Kids On The Block are back. They'll be playing together live on an American TV show for the first time in 14 years.

We know you don't really care about this piece of news, we're just using it to show you how hilarious they looked back in the day. Check this pic for proof.

Five To One: Rock Geeks

2008-04-04T07:58:00.000-07:00

It’s Friday, so it must be Five to Ones. A solid gold top five here, but who have we left out? Get on the forum and put us right!

5. Stephen Malkmus
Malkmus is indie-rock geek personified. Floppy hair? Check. A nice line in sensible suit jackets and good sturdy woolen pullovers? Check. Smarty-pants, arch lyrics? Check. Über-alt. Side projects? Check. Still, Pavement rocked.

4. Lou Barlow
Same as Malkmus but with added horn-rim and side-projectry.

3. Ben Folds
Folds writes songs about being dumped, being bullied and having girls laugh at his man bit. It doesn’t get much more nerdy than that. Unles you’re Screech from Saved By The Bell and Rivers Cuomo just gave you a beatdown for being a poindexter.

2. Graham Coxon
Ex-Blur guitarist Graham one saw a suave girl with a suave guy in Camden while he was having a bit of a coffee, thought to himself, ’pfft’, then went home, had a wee cry and wrote a song about it. We rest our case.

1. Rivers Cuomo
With the Weezer man’s infamous aversion to eye contact, alleged penchant for barely-legal Asian girlfriends, reclusive nature, lyrics about superheroes and D&D, not forgetting the ever-present thick horn-rimmed glasses and cardigan combo, Cuomo leads the pack in the rock geek fraternity.

We Haven't Gone Away You Know...

2008-04-03T08:01:00.001-07:00

It's been a week since the last blog update, but with good reason. We've all been ultra busy getting the new issue of AU finished. Then, right in the middle of our deadline, we become the victim of a burglary. They stole a laptop, camera, some cash and a folder full of photo shoots and images. Scummy. If any magazine subscribers are reading this, please send an email to jonny[at]iheartau[dot]com as the laptop held our subscriber info.

We've tweaked the design on this issue and it looks super sexy. It has tons of great content too. We Are Scientists, The B-52's, The Long Blondes, Two Door Cinema Club, an A To Z of Macho, a Guide to American Sitcoms and loads of other goodness. It looks like this...

...and will soon be available in all good newsagents and the like.

The soundtrack to the latter days of our deadline was the new Panic At The Disco album, 'Pretty. Odd.' (perfect, shiny and pristine pop) and the latest Cut Copy record 'In Ghost Colours' (New Order and My Bloody Valentine at the same time? Yes please). We cannot get enough of these two records.

Ridiculous Band And Album Name Alert

2008-03-27T06:03:00.000-07:00

We're All In The Gutter But Some Of Us Are Looking At They Came From The Stars I Saw Them.

Did you get that? The band are called They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them and the album is called 'We're All In The Gutter But Some Of Us Are Looking At' Pretty awesome, I think you'll agree. This picture of them is pretty cool too...

They've got strains of !!! and Hot Chip running through their psychedelic veins. Not just a pretty name, go give them a whirl.

Chart Toppers: Radiohead

2008-03-27T03:08:00.000-07:00

Yes, Radiohead have topped yet another list. This time it's the AU Last.fm chart.

We launched the I Heart AU group last week and this is the first chart it has generated. The group is open for anyone to join, so head over and sign up. The groups taste seems to be very close to the magazine too, with three of our recent cover stars residing in the top ten. It'll be interesting to see how the chart develops as more people get involved.

AU TV Flashback: The Young Knives

2008-03-25T07:16:00.000-07:00

We went along to see The Young Knives in Belfast last night. They were top notch, as always. Our favourite three things were...

1) The onstage banter between brothers Henry and The House Of Lords. Only family can be that abusive and get away with it.

2) Their cover of Adam And The Ants 'Prince Charming' as an encore. A pop post-punk classic.

3) 'Loughborough Suicide'. Easily their best song - why was it never released as a single?

Here is a flashback to the AU / Kick Out The Jams unplugged session that the band performed for us last year. It features a selection of their big tunes alongside a few lesser known b-sides. Enjoy.

New Spot: Two Door Cinema Club

2008-03-22T04:58:00.000-07:00

We've been into Two Door Cinema Club for a wee while now, what with them hailing from the town Bangor - just down the road from our HQ in Belfast. Impossibly young and sickeningly talented, they're peddle a nice line in melodic and intricate indie akin to Death Cab For Cutie and Broken Social Scene, combined with the skip and shuffle of Bloc Party.

Their new EP 'Four Words To Stand On' is being launched March 26, more details here. They were interviewed by our man Chris Jones yesterday and will be featured in the next issue of AU. In the meantime, check out this Brian Philip Davis Directed video for 'Undercover Martyn', which was commissioned by ATL TV and originally aired on the show a few weeks back. Look at their wee cherub faces...

Discovery Of The Day: Caspa Codina

2008-03-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

Today's top musical discovery is definitely Caspa Codina, the creation of one Gabriel Olegavich. It's a thick dollop of funk-electro atop a pie of sleazy disco hip-pop. Fans of Republic Of Loose, Jamie Lidell, Beck (circa 'Midnite Vulture'), Prince and Metronomy will love this.

We like all this acts, so it's easy to be into this. He also has an amazing display of facial hair, and a massive keytar. If you need further reference, examine that picture and then watch this awesome video. Oh, and go sex his MySpace up.

Expect to see more of Caspa Codina in next months mag, and drop us a comment if you like the tunes.

Five To Ones: Music Movies

2008-03-21T02:36:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the fact that it's Friday, we've decided that we're going to post up one of the 'Five To One' pieces from the magazine. We'll probably do this every Friday too. For those people out there who are new to the concept, it's basically a count down from five to one on anything from 'crap animals' to 'terrible football songs'. We're gonna kick it off with 'Music Movies'.

FIVE TO ONE: MUSIC MOVIES

5. Singles
Gruuuunge, duuuuuuude. How very Quaint it all seems now, but back in the day this movie was the shizzle. Cameos from Chris Cornell, Alice In Chains and Eddie Vedder only added to this uber cool Gen X celluloid classic.

4. Detroit Rock City
It's got KISS playing live, a cameo from porn queen Shannon Tweed, a kid losing his virginity in a confessional booth... really, you'd need to be smoking 'the dope' to think this wasn't one of the coolest music movies ever.

3. Empire Records
Fight the Power! Good looking indie record store employees fight the impending take-over from evil corporate whores to the tune of some kickass alt.tuneage - huzzah!

2. High Fidelity
Yes, the book is better but as far as adaptations go this one is pretty damn decent, despite the Americanisation of everything. And any movie that can boast a cameo from Bruce Springsteen in which The Boss doles out romantic advice to the protagonist is cool with us.

1. Almost Famous
Classic scenes, quotable lines, great cast (including the purrrfect Ms. Hudson) brilliant beards, trip-tastic threads and a cracking soundtrack - really, what more could you wish for? Altogether, 'Hold me closer, tiny dancer!"

Do you disagree with any of the choices here? Is there a movie that you think should have made the cut? Then head over to the AU Forum and state your case.

DIY Or Die

2008-03-20T06:51:00.000-07:00

The title isn't a reference to the choice between home decorating and death, rather it is a nod to a video Cathal Cully made on the DIY scene in Belfast. It includes contributions from Panama Kings, the Ordinary Days gig collective, the new We Collect Records label, the Catalyst Arts centre and AU publisher Jonny Tiernan. It's a nice wee video that is well worth checking out.

SXSW - Video stuff

2008-03-19T10:49:00.001-07:00

Found a few random videos I took with the digital camera at SXSW. The first one is a clip of 'Lapdance' from N*E*R*D. I've put this one up so that you can see just how much the crowd was bouncing. It also features cameos from Joe Dougan, Rigsy and Andrew Ferris.

Then there is this video, which features the end of Chromeo's set plus some closing words on the festival from Mr Ferris. Lethal!

SXSW - Day Four

2008-03-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

After a few big nights on the trot, I decided that the best thing to do would be to take it easy this afternoon, recuperate and tackle the day head on from 5pm. Andrew Ferris, Joe Dougan and I have arranged to meet at 5pm to see boy/girl drum/guitar duo The Ting Tings, who are playing the Bat Bar venue inside the Convention Centre. It's a big massive space with a really well-lit stage and a superb sound system, and they're also filming all the shows in there for TV broadcast or something. The Ting Tings are pretty good, nothing earth-shattering, but solid pop tunes all the same. In an effort to showcase their skills they even strip things back to just an acoustic guitar and vocals, which works quite well.

We take a quick pit stop for pizza and tacos to refuel, then head back to the same venue to catch Sons & Daughters and their unique brand of outlaw rock 'n' roll for the second time this week. Then we're off to Emo's to see Belfast homies Oppenheimer. We never tire of their synth-pop shenanigans and onstage banter. It's really good to hear tracks off upcoming second album 'Take The Whole Midrange And Boost It', and set closer 'Before And After The Quake' becomes lodged in my brain well into the next day. Immediately after they finish they have to leave and undertake a 20hr drive to LA. Hard to the core.

Next up is one of Andrew Ferris' shouts - the bloggers favourite, Okkervil River, who actually hail from Austin themselves so are on hometurf for this gig. I don't know how this band has passed me by for so long, but not having any preconceptions or ideas about them was a good frame of mind to be checking out the show from. They put me in mind of Bright Eyes crossed with The Hold Steady, music that is laden with emotion and delivered with real passion and verve. I can see their appeal and will definitely be swotting up on their much lauded album in the future.

Andrew and I head over to see Neon Neon, but on the way we get informed that the times had changed and they actually played an hour earlier than in the program. It’s a bit of bad luck, but we decide to just head back to 6th Street and hook up with Joe Dougan. Joe needed some fags so we dive into a newsagent type place. I bump into Danny and Bruce from the Whip, who are on their way to see someone called The Bloody Beetroots. They said they had played with them before, and they’re banging. The rest of us have never heard of them, but seeing as we’re at a loose end we decide to take a chance and head round to check them out too. Boy are we glad we did.

They’re playing in a ‘college dance club’ called Vice, and as soon as we walk through the door of the place it’s clear that it has a totally different atmosphere to anywhere else we’ve been at the festival. Rather than a crowd consisting of chin strokers and musos, this club is filled with people going absolutely buck wild, jumping up and down, dancing hard and throwing their hands in the air. There is a palpable, almost dangerous energy to the room and the tunes are absolutely pumping, so we gun down to the front straight away to see just who it is that has got this Vice so fired up.

We find an Italian DJ / Production duo, both wearing Spiderman style face masks and matching ‘Who’s cool now?’ emblazoned t-shirts. One of the pair is selecting and mixing tracks and the other is layering samples over the top and tweaking it up with effects. They work at unbelievable speed and the coordination they display is dazzling, especially considering that they both seemed to be winged. Massive, throbbing basslines and bleepy, whacked out noises are combined with snippets of everything from Metallica to the Adams Family. They cut, slice and dice the shit out of the tunes and keep the music

moving at breakneck pace, carving huge breakdowns seemingly every 40 seconds.

It’s a winning formula and one that keeps us and the rest of the place jumping non-stop. I can’t believe we found something so good by a total fluke and after throwing some serious shapes and having possibly the best time ever, we head off again, this time to see Welsh indie kids Los Campesinos!

One of the most amazing things about Los Campesinos! is how they manage to create a cohesive and pointed sound despite having six members playing an array of instruments. Much to the chagrin of frontman ??? it transpires that they’re not going to get to play for as long as they would like, but it’s been an exuberant and fun set anyway. They close with the anthemic ‘You, Me, Dancing’, and the crowd get behind it and show their appreciation.

Earlier in the day Ferris and I had been trying to decide what we would go and see at 1am, given that MSTRKRFT, Digitalism and others were clashing. Then I found out that Chromeo were playing at the same time, which was possibly the best news ever and allowed for the easiest decision of all time. For the umpteenth time tonight we’re able to use our SXSW badges to jump the queue (people with wristbands have to join a line), and we make it into Volume just as Chromeo are taking to the stage. Andrew points out that the club we’re in could pass for the set of Miami Vice, which is the perfect location to be enjoying some eighties infested electro funk in.
Somehow the duo make cheesy seem cool, and they seem to be having a good time onstage, which is great because we’re having a great time on the dancefloor. It’s great to hear tracks like ‘Tenderoni’, ‘Fancy Footwork’ and ‘Needy Girl’ played live, but the set does feel like it dips towards the end. I suppose it is difficult to sustain that high a feel-good factor for such a length of time though. They do the first encores we’ve seen all week, which tops things off nicely. Chromeo just scored themselves another satisfied customer.

We have just enough time to tear off down the street to catch the end of GZA’s set. Ferris wears his baseball cap backwards in a manner befitting the occasion, which is a nice touch. GZA is possibly the most laidback MC on the face of the planet. He clearly does not give a monkeys, even going as far as to take his mobile phone out of his pocket and check it at one point. Fair play to him. The gig starts to run over curfew, it gets cut short and that’s it, the music is over, SXSW 2008 reaches a close and it’s time to head home.

SXSW - Night Three

2008-03-16T10:56:00.000-07:00

With a packed agenda ahead it's off to see Make Model at Wave. We get down early in order to get a good spot at the front, 'cause if you're at the back of this venue it sure does suck. The wee stage can barely contain the sizeable Scottish outift as they rattle off future hits like a pared down Broken Social Scene. 'The Was', 'LSB' and 'Czech Neck' are all standouts, and we're now dead excited at the prospect of their debut album.

One quick jaunt down the street later and we're squeezing into Emo's to check out Crystal Castles. While the kids may be loving their glitchy computer music, it does start to blend into one big samey song after only three tracks. Shouty shouty noisy noisy bang bang bang. Maybe it would make more sense if I was a little more 'up for it'. We decide that the smart money is on trying to get in to see MGMT early, given how we couldn't gain access to their show the day before. They're playing at a venue called Stubbs and the stage is an outdoor affair which looks like something from Glastonbury and has a real festival vibe.

We're jammy enough to catch the last few tracks of Santogold, which is a real treat. 'Creator' sounds huge. It's dubby, tribal and absolutely jumping - the perfect closer for her set. I'm more than a bit excited about MGMT, given that their album has had almost constant rotation on the AU stereo. There is a massive buzz following this band around like a swarm of bees and they look like they been drowning in LSD for a few weeks. They already have a raft of stone-cold classic tracks under their belts. 'Electric Feel', 'Weekend Wars' and the monstrously anthemic 'Time To Pretend' all slay and there are a lot of musical strands running through their mutant brand of psychedelia. It's interesting and unique but we really want the band to roll out a second album to fill out their set and avoid being another fast-burning flash-in-the-pan.

We slide on to Mohawk to see be your own PET at the Ecstatic Peace showcase. BYOP are a total whirlwind of fast-flying Ramonesy punk rock. Front woman Jemina Pearl is giving it absolutely stacks and resolutely refusing to stay still for more than a millisecond. Until they kill the PA, that is. Yep, for the second time in as many days a SXSW PA bites the dust. It's a short and sweet encounter that packed a whole lot of attitude, much like Jemina herself.

With BYOP coming to a premature end we're left with plenty of time to make our way across town to see Mancunian knackers The Whip. This quartet have the aura of a band who live the dance lifestyle to the full. They take to the stage a little late but within no time they've got Maggie Mae's rooftop jumping to material taken from debut album 'X Marks Destination'. I'm having a hard time deciding just how seriously to take them, but for now it's time to leave the tongue in the cheek and just get with the party.

A swift jaunt down the road and we're at Emo's IV for New York duo Shy Child. They sure make a lot of noise for a two-piece, and there is an impressive degree of mastery held by Pete over his sexy white keytar. You can't go too far wrong with drums, synths and shouty vocals can you? We're about to make an early exit before the set ends but 'Drop The Phone' kicks off and, well, you just have to bust a move then, don't you?

We make a beeline for Stubb's once again, thinking we've probably missed most of N*E*R*D, but as luck would have it they've only just got going when we arrive. Even though we're in the outdoor, festival type venue it feels like an intimate setting to be seeing the giants of hip hop in. They exude effortless cool and are clearly total stars. As you'd expect, the big hits 'Rock Star' and 'Lapdance' totally destroy the place, and the crowd bounce in unison, kind of like a slow motion mosh. It's a climatic end to the night. Can things get any better than this?

SXSW - Day Three

2008-03-16T09:11:00.000-07:00

So much happens in a single day at SXSW that when you think back to the day before it can seem like last week. The first port of call for us today is the Northern Ireland Music Showcase at Latitude 30. It's an early start (well, early when you've been at gigs till 2am the night before) but there is a good, strong contingent out in force. Get chatting to Colin from In Case Of Fire, who reveals that a record deal could be on the cards soon, but won't say any more than that. Keep an ear out for future news. Driving By Night are the first to take to the stage, followed by Oppenheimer, In Case Of Fire and then The Answer. It's a broad sweep of musical styles on the bill and a testament to the depth of talent than NI has to offer.

Hooking up again with Andrew 'The Animal' Ferris, we head off to see The Cribs at the Village Voice showcase in La Rosa. It's a fair walk across town, and bearing in mind that the temperature here is hotter than the hottest day on record for Ireland, a drink of water is top of our list when we hit the venue.

It's a pretty spacious place and a nice set up. The Cribs play a storming set that feels loose and tight at the same time. Their punk rock sensibilities come across a lot more live than on record and at times it feels like watching a more talented Sex Pistols. With three solid albums to choose from the quality is kept at top level the whole time. The crowd get into it too, with a wave of excited recognition greeting single 'I'm A Realist', which is great considering we're thousands of miles from their native Wakefield. It's not clear whether or not the audience can understand Ryan's ultra--thick accent, but they laugh at his between song banter regardless.

I find out that ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead are playing the same venue in a few hours, but it's too long a wait and there are other things happening across town so we decide to make an exit. They've just signed a new record deal though, so let's hope they get some UK and Irish dates on their future touring schedule.

Next up Andrew takes me along to the Photo Finish Records showcase. This is the label that will be putting out the Fighting With Wire album in the States later this year. We get to meet a bunch of people from the label and everybody is really stoked about 'Man Vs Monster'. I get dead excited about the future prospect of FWW playing US shows, as they will surely tear the place a new one. We get to see one of their new labelmates Paper Rival - they're pretty good, soaring and intricate rock. I question whether any band really needs three guitars, but I'm sure they do. We briefly nip out to the outdoor venue behind the one we're in and get confronted by some angry punk type ranting about marijuana, and how he is all for it. Luckily he's doing it from the stage, so we can clear out with having to keep listening to him.

It's been a busy day, so after a quick Mexican meal (with guacamole freshly prepared table-side while you watch - result) it's time to head back to the apartment for a quick shower and a spot of blogging. Saw a segue-tour passing on the way back to the apartment. How cool would it be zipping round the city on one of those things? Must get it sorted for next year...

SXSW - Night Two

2008-03-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Post Italian meal, Andrew and I head on to check out the first of the bands on our list tonight - FM Belfast. This was one of Rigsy's recommendations, and it's a damn good shout. The name of the band is entirely misleading, as they're from Iceland rather than Northern Ireland. You'll be able to learn about the origin of the name on an upcoming ATL TV show, so I'll not spoil it for you here. They're playing upstairs in Maggie Mae's, and by the time we arrive the whole place is jumping. It's true party music, with both male and female singers, that comes across like The Go! Team via CSS. Rave on.

The next fact I'm going to share with you is pretty embarrassing, but also pretty funny. It's no secret that I wear impressively tight trousers, but on this day it was an ill-advised choice of clothing. Texas sunshine + incredibly tight pants = excessive painful chafing. Yes, that's right, chafing. So bad in fact, that I had to drag Andrew along to the apartment I'm staying in till I got changed. 'What's that you've left behind in Texas?' you might say. 'My self-respect' would be the immediate reply.

One change into fresh, looser-fitting trousers later and we're off again. This time it's to try and get in to see MGMT at the Rio. Rigsy once again let's us slide into the queue he's already halfway down, but this time it's no good. With a line of people stretching right round the street hoping to gain entry, a SXSW rep emerges and tells us that no one is leaving the already packed venue so we've pretty much no chance of getting in, and that as we paid a lot of money for the tickets we'd be best advised to try somewhere.

It's good advice that we decide to heed and so Rigsy, Andrew and I take the opportunity to head round to Barcelona to see DJ/Producer Diplo. The place is totally rammed and the crowd seem to be enjoying his dancehall inspired, dub-heavy set. About four tunes in and disaster strikes, the soundsystem dies, it's been Dip-blown. To be honest, the set wasn't what I was expecting from the man and it's good to make an exit.

The next choice of band we go to see is based pretty much entirely on their name - Tokyo Sex Destruction. Can you really go wrong with a moniker as awesome as that? The answer is no. They're playing at Red Eyed Fly, which is a sort of outside stage and a cool spot. With absolutely no expectations, what followed was a mindblowing concoction of Rocket From The Crypt, The Hives and Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, all carried by a front man who is like a punk-rock Mick Jagger minus the strut and maxed out on the hardcore. He spends way more time off stage than on, even taking the mic through the crowd and into the toilet at one point. No space is safe. He has a neat line in performance moves too, controversially wrapping the mic lead around his arm and slaps it, as if he is about to shoot up with a hypodermic needle, but instead he uses a mic. Rock 'n' roll is the drug that pulses through the veins of this band. What a discovery they turned out to be.

With the performance bar raised incredibly high, we head off Esther's Follies to see if deranged, midget, sleaze-funkster and Ron Jeremy porn-a-like Har Mar Superstar can clear it. Turned out that he could take it to a whole other level. When he first graced the stage there was a modest amount of people in the room, but with a combination of downright pumping electro tracks and an unlikely sex appeal he attracted an audience like moths to a bright light. Har Mar sure knows how to work it 'You fucking love Har Mar Superstar' he says. 'Hell yes we do!' is the reply. 'This is another new song, and it's a fucking gem'. 'Damn straight it is!' we retort. He makes huge self-congratulatory comments and you just have to agree.

It's incredible how he achieve this effect too, because let's face it, a short balding man with a pot belly shouldn't really be able to sing songs about sleeping with your girlfriend after you. On first glance you'd think he wouldn't get to sleep with anybody, but by the end of this set you're convinced that is indeed a real life sex symbol. He totally embraces his body image, shedding items of clothing one at a time, througout the set, until he is clad in nothing but his undercrackers. And he isn't doing this just for the fans indoors, the rear of the stage has big windows onto the street which he periodically dances in front of, like some sort of peep show, grinding up against the glass for the pleasure of an ever-growing crowd of onlookers. He works two audiences ten times as well as most people can work one.

He might use gimmicky aspects (at one stage he uses a device to hang a mic from his neck so he can sing and dance hands free) and novelty appeal to get your attention, but it's not all just front, Har Mar is a genuinely talented musician with a great bank tunes. Prince is an obvious reference point, and the new material he plays is in the same vein as his earlier work, but if it ain't broken, there's no need to fix it.

By the end of his set the whole room feels like one big party, and when he again says 'I'm Har Mar Superstar and I'm fucking amazing' that his statement is both beautifully simple and 100% accurate.

A wicked end to a superb night.

SXSW - Day Two

2008-03-15T11:02:00.000-07:00

Today kicks off with a trip to the Convention Centre for the big Trade Show. NIMIC are part of the big the British Music stall section so we're able to leave a selection of tasty magazines around for people to sample. There are tons of different stalls around the place for music gear, promotion companies, festivals - pretty much anything music related you can think of. If you're a band, artist or music company this place could be your mecca. Rigsy and the BBC crew are here too, interviewing Sandra from NIMIC and continuing their coverage of the day. After a bit of mingling I head out to catch a few shows.

First stop is the Transgressive Records showcase at Wave, the NME venue for SXSW. It's an odd place, the decor is super tacky and the bands are playing upstairs in what feels like someones garden patio. I get chatting to a couple of really nice people called Chris and Katie who drove to SXSW from Rhode Island. Check the map kids, that's a long way to go. Chris runs a college radio station in Philadelphia, and perhaps more interestingly has a good friend whose mum went out with Bruce Springsteen before he was famous and, get this, she split up with him because she didn't like his music. Whoops!
Katie used to go to Goldsmith College in London and had saw Johnny Flynn And The Sussex Wit play there before. She loved him so made it along to catch him at this showcase gig. The place is pretty busy and it's tough to see the stage, but Johnny and his band of merry men seem to be having a good time throwing out their jaunty, banjo-laden indie tunes.

When I'm heading down 6th street to the next spot, I run into MTV2 presenter, Radio One impresario and all round nice guy Zane Lowe, just hanging on the corner with an inflatable couch. As soon as he heard my accent he said "You're Northern Irish? We're instantly friends then." Knowing that he is a Fighting With Wire fan I decide to give him a copy of the new issue. As you can see from the pic, he clearly loves the mag.

We have a bit of a chat about what's been floating his boat so far, which included Vampire Weekend and be your own PET. I got to sit on the fabled MTV2 couch, which we had to sit down and get up from simultaneously to avoid one of us falling over. We had to sit down on the count of three, and it did cross my mind to actually just let him sit on the count and see if he hit the deck, but he's too cool a dude to play tricks on.

I head to see AU faves Fight Like Apes at the Irish venue BD Riley's. What is dead cool about this place is the fact that they have massive open window spaces that open out onto the street, meaning that anyone passing by can witness the frenetic FLA doing their thang. When I first looked through the window I saw frontwoman MayKay with her shoes off, writhing around on the floor at the feet of the crowd. How could you not want to head inside after that? Their controlled-yet-chaotic, synth-driven goodness goes down a storm and it feels like they've won a lot of fans both in the room and on the tarmac outside.

All this action and we're just hitting dinner time? Things could get messy. I hook up with Andrew Ferris of Smalltown America Records and Jetplane Landing fame to grab a bite to eat before hitting up some more shows.

SXSW - Night One

2008-03-14T16:32:00.000-07:00

After a busy day it's straight out to the first gig of choice, which is the Domino Showcase in a venue called Antone's. I'm about to go and join the back of the already sizeable queue when Rigsy says hello. He's already halfway to down the line of people, so I shimmy in beside himself and Feargal. A wee bit sneaky, but it's not to be the last time that Rigsy saves me a long wait. Props to that man.

First on the bill is a DJ set from Simian Mobile Disco. I'd been hoping for a live set from them, but they're spinning good tunes, so it's OK. Set highlights are definitely Plastikman 'Spastik', followed by Green Velvet 'Flash'. While the foray into mid 90s techno is appreciated, as Rigsy pointed out it's not what you expect to hear at half eight on a Wednesday evening!

Next up is spiky new wavers These New Puritans. They plough the art rock furrow previously sculpted by The Fall and Wire. Their recent single 'Elvis' is the clear stand out track. A pulsing belter, the set could have down with a few more of those moments. The front mans top is classic though, looking some kind of feathered metalesque armor top. Kudos.

A quick jaunt across town to Maggie Mae's to catch DeLorean, who hail from Spain. I first discovered this band at Primavera in 2005, totally by accident and largely down to the fact that they share their name with the car used in Back To The Future (the movie trilogy with which I am obsessed). Turned out that the band are actually a rocking prospect. They thump along with a mixture of phat keyboards, thick bass and zingy guitars, kind of like a techno saturated Moving Units. Great stuff.

I then head back to the Domino showcase again, where for the second time in the same night Rigsy enables me to jump the queue. What a guy. We're in to see wonder-Scots and recent AU cover stars Sons & Daughters. They're the band of the night so far, throwing the gritty in with the glam. 'Dance Me In' still slays, and you just can't beat a Scottish accent.

We stick around the same venue to catch a bit of The Kills, who come out all guns blazing. They sure make a fierce amount of noise for a duo. Full of attitude and purpose, they attack each song as if they want to beat it up and thrash the life out of it. It's a technique that works though, and the onstage dynamic is a treat.

If this is what you can see in one night, I reckon this is going to be a hell of a few days.

SXSW - Day 1

2008-03-14T16:04:00.001-07:00

It's the first proper day of the music leg of SXSW, so I head down to the Convention Centre to go through the registration process. On the way down I decide to grab a bit of lunch from this big Whole Foods supermarket, which it turns out is actually the greatest food chain on Earth. We need one of these in Belfast, or else I'm going to move country so that I'm close to one. It's health food heaven, fresher than anything.

Anyways, it was also different from your average Tesco due to the fact that 90% of the shoppers there looked like they were in a band or worked in the music bizz, and I've never seen so many cool tattoos. I bumped into a guy called Francisco, who was wheeling his guitar around in a trolley. It turned out he had busked his way down from California, playing his guitar to get enough gas money to get to the next spot. Crazy.

This type of person and encounter becomes the norm in Austin. I've never saw so many hipsters and cool people in the same place at the same time.

The registration process turns out to be super quick and easy, despite there being mammoth queues (check out the pic). As soon as you get signed up and get your pass, you can head off and get a SXSW goodie

bag type thing. It weighs a serious amount and is filled with loads of CDs and pruck. It included free copies of Spin and Wired. Score!

Then head I round to the Belfast / Nashville Sister City Showcase at Latitude 30, which is the sort of the designated British venue for showcase gigs of bands from Scotland, England, Wales and of course Northern Ireland. Brian Houston, Foy Vance, Beth Nielsen-Chapman and more all play blinders. Foy's cover of 'Back In Black' goes down well, there is never a bad time for a bit of AC/DC. The Answer also play a few unplugged numbers, which is rocking.

After the gig I stepped out for some dinner with Robert Collins of the Arts Council. It's a weird feeling leaving a gig and encountering blazing sunshine. All good mind. Robert and I eat in the most random restaurant of all time, a place called Jezebeles, which has massive chunks of plaster missing from the walls, green astroturf on the toilet walls and paintings of naked women everywhere. The food is great though, best not to judge a book by it's cover, eh?

No time to head back to the apartment to dump the previously mentioned bag of pruck, so it's off to the first of the nighttime shows...

SXSW - travel day

2008-03-14T08:30:00.001-07:00

Well, it's not technically the first day of South By South West, but it is the first day of the AU mission to the music festival in Austin, Texas. We're heading over to SXSW via the assistance of the Northern Ireland Music Industry Commission. The plan is to mix business with pleasure, meet record labels and various peeps plus check out some fine new bands. Of course, this will include the Northern Irish contingent who have made the trip over (In Case Of Fire, Driving By Night, Oppenheimer and The Answer), plus the bands from rest of Ireland (specifically, Fight Like Apes).

We set off from Belfast at 7.15am with travel partner Joe Dougan. Grab some breakfast, hang out for a bit, bump into Jennie McCullough, find out that Rigsy and Feargal O'Kane are traveling on the same flight. Nice.

Land in Newark, NY, after a fairly decent 7.5 hr flight. Joe, Rigsy, Feargal and I kill the time rightly with bad jokes, Mexican food and masturbation stories (courtesy of Rigs). Our onward flight to Austin is totally filled with hipster types. It's a sea of laptops and iPods.

We land in Austin 22 hrs after we left Belfast. Good times.