Balloon single/badge explained, and why I love Bristol

Before I crack on and tell you why I love Bristol, I want to do a bit of a shout out about my Balloon single, which looks like this:

The badge comes complete with a download code to get Balloon, Sticking in Pins, Balloon video, and the badge itself which is a small part of a very big stitched mountain I made from old paper (sea charts, antique book covers and scrolls from Japan, my scale book from school etc)

There is a code to track your very piece. And there is an invitation to join the photo project, the idea being that the squares can be tracked to their next destination.... hopefully with an exhibition next spring/summer.

This is my submission and below is a short film of the making of this project which describes it better than words

order BALLOON BADGE from www.brokensoundmusic.com

And now I'll give some news of he last few weeks. Lots of inspirational goings on in BRISTOL:

STREET PARTY, EASTON

Impromptu session at our street party, wind section just out of the picture included 3 clarinetists, french horn, sax and a trumpet. ....and all living in the same street would you believe

ICHI'S HUMAN SIZED EARTH XYLAPHONE

getting tips from our neighbour who we met at the street party

FORAGE

A day in Boiling Wells, Bristol, organised by the marvellous Qu Junktions team. A magical array of sound art goings on amongst the foliage

Putting the bike trailer/suitcase to good use

Earth Xylaphone digging action, received lots of "who are you burying" comments

After a short improvisational performance by Ichi, we improvised by getting inside it 1 at a time! Sounded beautiful from within, not claustraphobic but cosy and you could feel the humming vibrations of the wood. Late in the day family of 4 children, youngest just 1 year old, climbed inside all together and stayed there for about 10 minutes. Finally it had to be dismantled. Destroying things is so quick in comparison to creating them! Ichi is already thinking about a new improved design.

Tall James's wind pipe organ creations

as an observer it was hard to understand but I gleaned that all had different instructions coming at them through their headphones. One participant was told to check her e-mails, another was told to ask if anyone wanted anything from the kiosk

APPLE AND MULBERRY PICKING

I went out along the cut in Bristol with a group who look after the wild apple trees. I got involved with a saw and came home with apples for a huge crumble

EXHIBITION by HIENZ JUNKINS (James from OLO Worms) at The Louisiana

with Music from myself, Ichi, Rozi, SJEsau and Found

Ichi in the cellar

Rozi Plain

SJEsau with some incredible projections he's been making

and now for a quick Europe Tour Plug...

EUROPE SEPTEMBER TOUR

me and Ichi are packed and ready

Sep 15th - Feinkostlampe, Hannover, Germany
Sep 16th - Volksbad Buckau, Magdeburg, Germany
Sep 18th - Fischbar, Leipzig, Germany
Sep 20th - Fluc, Vienna, Austria
Sep 22nd - Hafen 2, Offenbach, Germany
Sep 23rd - Kohi, Karlsruhe, Germany
Sep 24th - Oliver Peel Session, Paris, France
Sep 30th - Enuma, Dusseldorf, Germany

Bristol Introducing session

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00jr38q

3 days left to listen,
slightly self indulgent 40minute chat about my album,
all the songs get aired and three of them were played live in the studio

Bite The Mountain Tour continued

travelling forth pack-horses style

WINCHESTER

Greg Ashby warmed up the stage to the friendly crowd in Winchester Hyde Tavern with beautiful songs old and new. Incredibly excited about his new album in the making. His last (Greg's Songs) has had 'heavy rotation' (favourite Japanese phrase) in my player

www.myspace.com/gregashby

Rozi Plain with Kano

Ichi

and onwards to Reading South Street Arts

READING

Rozi

BRIGHTON

Perhaps my favourite show of the whole tour. Wilkomen Collective's Danny of Laish hired out a cosy basement room which became packed on selling out. Everyone in that room was a-glowing with good energy and the intamacy was truly helped along with the absence of any PA, or even plug sockets come to think of it. And I had the privilege of being joined by Danny, Marcus and Emma of the Wolkommen Collective, as well as the trusty Rozi and Ichi

POOLE

The last night of Club Anenome, although we reckon it's just hibernating, tentagles retracted, resting but poised for action when the time is next right, hey Paul!?

TRUCK FESTIVAL

Illustration of me and Kano at Truck by Tom Watson

WILDERNESS FESTIVAL

No photos of my performance, but lovely memories, wonderful warm crowd, a friendly heckler, apples from a tree given to those who could dance to my songs or who came on stage to join in, alone in the Wilderness, but not alone. Made some new friends including fellow Folk Guild Stage performers Steve Fin and Jack Cheshire.

the amazing art of balancing stones on show

GREENMAN FESTIVAL

CINEMA TENT

A week before Greenman we had our heads glued to screens making films. It was worth it. Thank you Arctic Circle for having us in your amazing space.

Here are photos of Ichi to film of Japan, Me to Betsy Dadd's animation, The Hedgehog ensemble (Bristol's finest Kano and Steve, Marcus and Emma of Wilkommen Collective, Ichi, Rozi and myself) to Hedgehog in the Fog by Yuriy Norshteyn, and Rozi Plain to Betsy Dadd's animation www.betsydadd.blogspot.com

CHEPSTOW

days song writing retreat

river severn, castle, gaps in the clouds, Japanese picnic

ATTIC

While I was in Chepstow Ichi was building new sounds from old

CAFE KINO

James Boyce played a beutiful set on a chair with Middle Ones singer singing too, on a chair

The new percussion instrument that Ichi made gave his set a home-made techno edge, while people of stokes croft gathered outside to watch

Bite the Mountain Tour halfway mark

Me, Ichi, Rozi Plain, This is the Kit have been swirling about playing in the south of England on the Bite the Mountain Tour to mark the release of my new album, and to have fun hanging out and playing together again. I've been having such a lovely time with tooting brass, percussion and steelpan on my songs by all the pals above plus Kano on saxaphone and Andy Skellam on guitar. All has been super dooper but if I had to say what sticks out then the highlights sofar have been The album launch part 1 - King's Head in Crouch End, where the whole of Tristram added parts without even needing much of a rehearsal, and Ichi's set at Cafe Oto was tip top, he pulled out suprises even for me (and I've seen him 100's of times) - it was the perfect antidote to my nerves.

Now just over the halfway mark, off to Oxford in a few hours with Wig Smith to play at Modern Art Oxford and Truck festival.

Here's our tour so far in a few pictures

Before we set of to play shows Ichi was busy building new instruments in the attic, including new and improved stilts that double up as double bass

Meanwhile I was nervously unwrapping and listening to my album that plopped onto the doormat

Me, Ichi, This is the Kit, Rozi Plain and Whalebone Polly all had sets at the cosy Watts Festival in beautiful Devon

bed of bails

haybail fun

The arrival of Andy Skellam, preparing to drive into deeper Devon

After Watts festival we met up and camped for a night with the bicycle tour gang led by Jesse Morningstar. Most of the gang were from France in a band who's name I can't remember at the moment, but who I loved. A shame we couldn't manage it this year but determined to join them on bikes next year, toot toot, pip pip

We camped on Sean's (ex Moonflowers) farm in Seaton, and were treated to his salad leaves and hedgerow delights, thank you Sean

Ichi at Miss Peapods, Falmouth

Me and Kate of This is the Kit, Miss Peapods

Kano's drawing at the Cube, Bristol

side of the stage, The Cube, drawing to raise donations for the Tsunami appeal

The Cube

Ichi's set at cafe Oto, one of my highlights

dad's cake decorated by me, sister Betsy and Ichi

In April we planted Japanese gobo seeds in my mum's veg patch and low and behold they grew big and strong

and delicious