I Am The Resurrection

My first interview feature - Olly Hookings from States of Emotion..

2010-12-02T06:37:00.000-08:00

(Glastonbury Festival 2009)

Being in an unsigned band can be a tough old life. The work is hard, the pay is lousy, and the commitment required can leave some packing up their guitars and heading home.

However, Essex band States of Emotion are full of confidence at the moment, and I met up with lead singer Olly Hookings to see what all the fuss was about.

At first glance it is easy to underestimate the man; his slight figure and quiff of blonde hair are certainly an unexpected feature. But once we started talking, I started to realise this was a guy who was passionate, and driven to get to the top.

“The band’s our lives. I dreamed of being in a rock band when I was 8 years old and that’s when I first came up with the name States of Emotion.”

“I met all the members of the band at school and we considered changing the name at one point, but because of the history and the story behind it, I got emotionally attached to it.”

As we continued to chat, I noticed the array of posters on show in the kitchen, and we got onto talking about some of the bands main influences.

“Well I’d have to say Kasabian are definitely a favourite band of mine from the last 10 years. I’ve seen them live quite a few times and I think they’re the best thing out there at the moment. I grew up listening to a lot of Oasis and Stone Roses but all the guys in the band are into different things.”

He then blushingly admitted, “I must say I do love my pop music too, I’m not ashamed to say that Abba are definitely a guilty pleasure of mine!”

The 23 year old has enjoyed a successful year thus far, and as I started to learn more about the band, I went on the subject of their debut single ‘Fight Them on the Beaches,’ which was named the ‘Hottest Track in the World’ on Zane Lowe’s Radio One show.

“I was absolutely buzzing. It came at a really good time for the band. We were writing and finishing the album at that time and to have that kind of exposure was unreal.”

“Fight them on the Beaches is one of the older tracks on the album, and is definitely a favourite for the people who have followed us from the start. So to hear it on the biggest radio station in the world was unbelievable.”

After finishing a quick tour of the house, which ironically is on a road aptly named ‘Essex Way’, we were interrupted by Olly’s cat ‘Figaro’ whose energy and demeanour was indicative of his owner’s performance at last year’s Glastonbury Festival.

“On paper it’s our biggest gig but there were only really 80 to 100 people in the tent. At first I was disappointed with the way it went but on reflection I’m really proud of what we achieved. We were lucky to be able to play such a big festival so early in our career, and it’s a really good one to have under the belt. We’ll go into the next one with a hundred per cent more confidence.”

As my time with the charismatic front-man came to an end, he gave me an insight for his vision for the future of States of Emotion.

He confidently said, “Every new band promises things, but I really believe we’ve got the commitment and the songs to break through. Sometimes it’s hard to keep that passion after being together so long, but to be honest it still feels fresh, we’ve got the tunes and we’re aiming for big things. We’ve always set out to play the big gigs and get the big record sales, and I fully believe we’ll do that.”

Still Fresh...

2010-11-25T04:57:00.000-08:00

Ignore the dodgy afro's and the multi-coloured jumpsuits; this show is still relevant. Ask any self-respecting teenager born in the early 90's they will testify to this sitcoms timeless appeal.

Now if you ask alot of people of our generation who they idolised as a child, Will Smith would be high on the list. Whether it was his iconic song's such as 'Welcome to Miami' and 'Summertime', or his star role in sci-fi comedy Men in Black; the man could do nothing wrong.

However, 'The Fresh Prince' was where it all started, and you can still see the likes of 'Uncle Phil' and 'Geoffrey the Butler' on our screens everyday in the UK.

Although some of the content is outdated, and yes the glare from their outlandish 90's clothing still hurts our eyes, this show is still easily watchable. Whether it's merely on daytime TV when nothing else is on, or a casual trip down memory lane, this show is a classic. Some might say it's one of those shows that sends you back to a time where 'the playground is where i spend most of my days..." (See what i did there...?)

Enjoy xx

If you want to see how the cast turned out.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDVl7jDIHHY&feature=channel Will
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG6T14reSPE Uncle Phil
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAq5R0X5-vw&feature=channel Hilary
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoRnNyvM3U0&feature=channel Ashley
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VxExTzLvHo&feature=channel Carlton
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu3fN4I-feE&feature=channel Jazz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83t6HD0ASnU&feature=channel Nicky
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAt6-W9joeU&feature=channel Geoffrey

States of Emotion - Just a mention..

2010-11-18T05:33:00.000-08:00

http://www.myspace.com/statesofemotion

Written by the band themselves....
"STATES OF EMOTION are four young, dangerously talented and jagged musicians from the South East. The band write music together that can be described as pure, anthemic, honest, pop songs with an original exploration of moods that is so rarely achieved by any modern day guitar based act. They have three spankingly large new tracks recorded at Modern World Studios with the untamable GREG HAVER (MANICS.) Working with Greg proved to be a great process for the band, so much so that the recording of the debut album is now pencilled in for November 09. The band were asked by BBC Radio 1 to play Glastonbury Festival 2009 in June as part of the BBC Introducing Stage line up. Championed by XFM's John Kennedy,Oasis Mngr Marcus Russell and BBC Essex Introducing the boys make epic sounds inspired by Kasabian, Band Of Horses, The Rolling Stones, Kings of Leon and Foo Fighters, of course to name but a few. The bands track "She Cuts Shapes" was recently featured on the last in the series of ITV 2 show FM. Reared and revered in their Essex homeland for their in your face live shows and with a strong fan-army of boys and girls, this band have an inspirational and raucous heart and are stopping at nothing to get into the Nations consciousness. See you there. RECENT SHOWS @ WATER RATS, CLUB NME, THE BARFLY, LONDON, CLUB FANDANGO, THE OFFSET FEST (GUITAR HERO STAGE), Supports with Captain."

A lovely-written review of the band will be posted from yours truely in the future..Watch this space.

Rock Royalty...

2010-11-11T18:18:00.000-08:00

What else is there to do on a Monday?

2010-11-11T08:55:00.000-08:00

Math-rock purism in Brighton on a Monday night..?...Yeah why not.

So after a rather successful showing at this years Reading/Leeds festival, i thought i'd go give the Foals some more of my not-so hard earned money (thanks student loan..).

Enjoyed the set, most notably the final song 'Two Steps Twice' which saw the ever-enigmatic lead singer Yannis Philippakis climb the top tier, run around with his guitar and jump back down on stage to smash out the final verse. How fun.

Now as is the case with me there is time for a small rant....14 year old mop-haired, sweaty, annoying prepubescent children..Please fuck off. The mere presence of them at a gig is enough for me to abort my plans for future procreation...

Bye Bye xx

Mayhem in a somewhat sleepy town...Lewes Firework display 2010

2010-11-06T11:32:00.000-07:00

Now when you think of fireworks displays you think of sparklers, familys and a few fireworks. Lovely.

However, when i rocked up in Lewes for there annual fireworks 'extravaganza', i was welcomed with a fire cracker to the face and thousands of screaming teenagers armed with cans of Carlsberg and some wooly gloves...Carnage, but i must say..i rather enjoyed it.

This wasn't just a piss-up in a field and a few colourful explosions in the sky, this was literally the taking over of a small town. Shops were boarded up, roads were closed and intoxicated chavs pretty much had the rule over this picturesque little town in East Sussex for a whole evening.

Although i wasn't really aware of the history and tradition it was nice to see that element to the evenings proceedings. Sometimes though, i did wonder whether i was at a mixture of gay pride, the Gaza strip and a KKK rally.

Overall though, it really was a worth-while evening. Besides the premature lighting of a rather impressive bonfire, the evening went off without a hitch.

So next year if you're looking for a bonfire night with a bit of a difference, Lewes is definitely your place.

Peace out. xx

The Libertines

2010-11-04T12:47:00.000-07:00

These lads have produced some of the best music to come out of Britain in the last decade. Listen and love them.

Little rant from me...

2010-11-04T11:35:00.000-07:00

So yesterday i'm sitting in a cafe in Brighton and i get a text..."Saw 3D tonight lads!!!"...Brilliant. My crusade against 3D films can continue.

Now it isn't that a don't like the idea of 3D, quite the contrary..i applaude the innovation, but to be honest 3D films are fucking terrible! All the emphasis is on useless and pointless special effects and the 80p required to pay for the 'special' glasses is frankly extortionate.

Now being a partial fan of the Saw franchise i genuinely had high hopes for this film, maybe 3D would change my mind, maybe my crusade could end. Nope.

Now i've seen many films in my time, good and bad, but i can honestly say this one was of the most forgettable. The opening was poor, the acting pathetic and it really did leave a sour taste in the mouth after the hype the film has undeservedly received.

So the moral of this story is...save your 80p and buy some Pic n Mix instead.

Rant over.

Me.

2010-11-02T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hello.............There we go, off to a good start.

I'm a pretty normal fellow...i walk, i talk and sometimes knit (that's a lie i think) ...so yeah, this is the start of many blog entries which i hope you will all very much enjoy.

"The whole of life is but a moment of time. It is our duty, therefore to use it, not to misuse it."
Plutarch