Night Lights

Every Wednesday I share five things I’ve liked and think you might like too. Here are this week’s five things…

1. An interactive timeline of popular songs from 1958-2016. Pretty cool!
    
2. I love ambient music (Brian Eno, A Winged Victory For The Sullen, Stars Of The Lid) and what do you get when you slow down Windows start-up sounds 4000%? Something that sounds remarkably like ambient music!
    
3. It’s so easy to be critical or mean.. I’m sure Wendy MacNaughton’s list will come in handy!
    
4. A great post by Chris Dixon on the future of technology. Start now — “There has never been a better day in the whole history of the world to invent something. There has never been a better time with more opportunities, more openings, lower barriers, higher benefit/ risk ratios, better returns, greater upside than now. Right now, this minute. This is the moment that folks in the future will look back at and say, ‘Oh, to have been alive and well back then!’”
    
5. A deeply moving episode of Radiolab. Well worth listening to and reflecting on — “When people are dying and you can only save some, how do you choose? Maybe you save the youngest. Or the sickest. Maybe you even just put all the names in a hat and pick at random. Would your answer change if a sick person was standing right in front of you?”

That's all for this week. If you liked this, check out my previous Five Things posts or sign up to receive future posts straight to your inbox. Enjoy!

It's blue

Every Wednesday I share five things I liked and think you might like too. Here are this week’s five things…

1. Alex Honnold is a free solo climber (no ropes) and a completely fascinating guy. This is a great article on him and how he processes (or doesn’t? process) fear.
    
2. I haven’t done as much reading as I would have liked in the last few weeks. Austin Kleon recently shared this on the rights of the reader. Point three is a big one for me.
    
3. I love Malika Favre’s art and I enjoyed reading this interview on her work and process. She’s one of my favourite people to follow on Instagram.
    
4.  If you read one thing today, make it this. — 232 sand dollars by Derek Sivers
    
5. I haven’t been really paying much attention to the Olympics. However, the feats of the gymnasts have caught my eye — They appear to defy gravity! Check out this video on Simone Biles - very cool.

That's all for this week. If you liked this, check out my previous Five Things posts or sign up to receive future posts straight to your inbox. Enjoy!

I've spent the last five days on the road with Coco And The Butterfields, playing Belladrum Festival in Inverness (sharing a line up with Madness, The Darkness, Two Door Cinema Club & Super Furry Animals!) and Sunflower Festival near Belfast (which we headlined on Sunday). 

Was a long and tiring trip but a lot of fun!

A man about town taking photos of things he says #2

Here are the five things I thought were worth sharing this week: 

1. Interesting thoughts on the benefits of sharing what you do or know for free. In a hyper-competitive environment like the internet, standing out from the crowd is difficult. Sharing your expertise for free can be a great way to build a reputation or following. — “Giving My Images Away For Free” by Samuel Zeller.
    
2. One of my favourite podcasts This American Life has just finished an excellent miniseries on the 57,000 refugees living in Greece. It’s far too easy to forget there are people with hopes and dreams just like you and I behind the statistics we hear on the news. This American Life has done a great job illuminating some of these people’s lives. I highly recommend both episodes as well as the online tour of the refugee camps that accompanies the series. Really eye-opening and moving.
    
3. Another podcast recommendation, this time from Radiolab. Totally fascinating and one of my new favourite episodes. — “In this story, a dog introduces us to a strange creature that burrows beneath forests, building an underground network where deals are made and lives are saved (and lost) in a complex web of friendships, rivalries, and business relations. It’s a network that scientists are only just beginning to untangle and map, and it’s not only turning our understanding of forests upside down, it’s leading some researchers to rethink what it means to be intelligent.”
    
4. Recently I’ve been listening to a lot of music by Tim Hecker. Here are some favourites on Spotify. 
    
5. I’m really enjoying Instagram’s new Stories feature. I follow a lot of artists, musicians and photographers and many of them having been sharing behind the scenes footage and insights in to their creative process. The author and illustrator Dallas Clayton’s stories have been some of my favourites. Go follow him and while you’re at it… why not follow me?

That's all for this week. If you liked this, check out my previous Five Things posts or sign up to receive future posts straight to your inbox. Enjoy!

Last week Kick! Music Schools ran it's July Rock School at St Peter's by the Waterfront in Ipswich.

At the concert, we had the pleasure of witnessing this guitar solo by a 12-year-old. Age is rarely a good indicator of a person's talent, but needless to say, our minds were collectively blown!

Truly inspiring. Enjoy! 🎸🔥

ps. You can learn more about Kick! Music Schools at www.kickmusicschools.co.uk.