One of my most consistent, and favourite gigs of the past ten years, has been the Block Party sessions run by Clyde, aka DJ Bligeness. These take place in the beautiful, but unlikely location of Cumbria’s Lake District, and I’ve made the long road trip many times since 2005. The session came to an abrupt end in 2012, and it looked as if it was over for good. Clyde had persuaded the new management at The Wheelhouse in Bowness to let him stage a reunion gig this month, however, so I headed up on Thursday 3rd full of anticipation for one last blast. It pissed down all the way, but the foul weather didn’t stop an enthusiastic throng from turning out to hear us drop 90s and early 2000s hip-hop and R&B anthems. For myself, this was made all the more special by the fact that every single tune was played off vinyl, the first such gig I’ve done for many years. Big props to Neelan J Photography who took a stunning set of photos on the night, which you can catch here:
Following a hugely satisfying night, I headed for my hotel room, before catching up on much in-car CD listening back home the following day.
I guested on three shows this month to drop my perspective on various matters. Two of them were on the on-line Conscious Consumer Network which involved me appearing in-vision, (rather than in my preferred voice-only format.) The first was with the Dutch researcher Johan Oldenkamp on his Pateo TV show. A few days later, I was back on the same network with Natalie-Marie Hart for Crystal Kids TV. This marked the first time I’d addressed an audience of young teens about the reality of what’s going on in the world, and I tried my best to get some crucial information across, but remain mindful of the listening demographic. The third show was an appearance on the Chaos & Theory podcast of Neal Veglio, a radio news journalist who I’ve known for the best part of 20 years. This marked my debut addressing a mainstream, ‘normal’ listenership, giving them truth that most would probably have been hearing for the first time.
We made some family memories on Friday 18th, as we headed off on a day trip to Lapland, Northern Finland, flying out of Birmingham. It was an exceptionally long day, involving getting up at 3.45am and getting home at 11pm. But there was value in knowing it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, crossing the Arctic Circle in temperatures of minus 16, with snow, reindeer and huskies all around.
And that was it for December and for 2015. This year certainly won’t go down as one of my favourites, either in terms of world events, or personal situations. In fact, it was probably the most challenging and difficult so far, and I know many others will be with me on that. Being realistic, 2016 will doubtless involve more of the same. But on the flipside, every problem is a solution waiting to be applied, and with the amount of people now waking up to great truths about what’s really going on in this worldwide lunatic asylum – and armed with the free-will resolve to finally do something about it – I feel we’re in for some fascinating times never before experienced by humankind. Either way, it’s our choice, collectively, which way everything will ultimately pan out. It always has been.