March Newsletter

 

How I wish to stave off thirst

In a world where capital is valued so highly, the destruction of human life becomes collateral damage. Hello my spring chickens... and welcome to the Four Blokes Newsletter for March. The days are warmer and flowers are in bloom - rain and wind subside for sunshine. Ecologically speaking these are the recent events - but what's going on with the band?

New full colour photo of Tiago

First order of business in March - the initial announcement of the announcement. 1 weeks time, a press conference in London Town.. the abode of former bloke Two Puff Tommy as well as Ed, of Auden and Escher fame. What could we want with these scruffs, these Dagenham and Redbridge hooligans! Well - it could not be revealed due to the disappearance of a 90-layer digital illustration of some forget-me-nots. The masses of fans desperately anticipating the word of Four Blokes would have to wait...

The boys reconvened and returned to rehearsals, even if the public were not privy to exactly what we were rehearsing for. Murder of Crows and Xylazine Addiction were added to the fold, Four Blokes mutating into something new... for 2 and a half years we have been playing first album material, making a meaningful departure from that is so so gratifying. The composition has evolved and diversfied to such a degree that, out of the 14 songs composed for the second album, we are playing the only 5 with electric guitar. Our last live performance - now over half a year ago - increasingly seems like the end of an era. Our imminent return to the stage in turn represents a new way of artistic expression - a new way of being... a.k.a we will play D major 7 and I can grow 3 chest hairs

"THEY CAN'T KNOW HOW I LIVE!"

Next - a continuation of sessions for the 2nd LP (1st still yet to come out) - on the menu this time, metaphorically speaking, paella y pimentos de padron... y spliffs. ¡Arriba! This was the first session working on "Una Vida, Con Ella", a recently penned, flamenco-inspired, Spanish langauge ballad. After de-tuning 2 steps into "slipknot territory" we laid it down. Now, an exclusive quote from Tiago on the session:

"One more hour of that Spanish song the other day I would have strangled you until I got a raging boner, you were using words like “modulate” to teach me the song without knowing what they meant at all 😭😭😭 The worst part is that this is by far the most complex song you have written in terms of chords and you were explaining it to me using the complete wrong words"

I concur. We managed to construct a version of sorts, but the committee voted to remake the song from scratch - but not before a holiday..

The duo... in a Polish Jazz Club

The Four Blokes Diplomatic Trip to Poland was a resounding success. Yes, there was massive extortion leading to financial destitution and the police were unable to find a missing person, but we also discovered the wonders of jazz! I actually got up and drummed with a Polish jazz band at the Harris Jazz Bar which was a unique experience; it's all just 4/4 at the end of the day. I enjoyed local cuisine and, ever rarer in this warmer and warmer world, proper snow, as well as St Patrick's Day karaoke of both Tom Jones and IRA classics. Here are some statistics from the 4 day trip;

Cities visited: 4 (Kraków, Wieliczka, Warszawa, Katowice)

Pints consumed: 17

Contempary Galleries attended: 3

Unarmed miners shot dead during the 1981 strike in Upper Silesea: 9

The four of us, hard at work

Back in the country - and back to rehearsals! 9 songs perfected and 3 to go... April 6th, on an achey post-marathon afternoon - an aim to get to run-through stage.

"I've never been to a young couple boyfriend/boyfriend house. I'm just saying, I've never been" - Tiago Martins

Concert poster, made by my beautiful wife

Anyways, the announcement of Four Blokes' next concert performance finally came! Lining up alongside my band of raving loonies are -

Gegenpress

(South London)

Post-rock trio with long wandering explorations into anguish - hard, loud, and devastatingly emotive.

The French Laundry

(Dagenham and Redbridge)

The experimental new project from London's most beatniky students; meanders into electronica, tender and corduroy-clad. Candlelit kisses 💋 

 

You should COME TO THAT! PURCHASE LOS TICKETOS! 🎟 April 24th, Heartbreakers.

REGARDless - there is little more but a summary sentence to give you before we part ways once more. As spring sprung, Four Blokes spent the merry munch of March rehearsing, recording "Una Vida Con Ella", visiting Poland, and announcing the next excursion into the public eye (for a fee)

Where will we go next? For one, on to the stage, in just 24 days time.. before that, many happy returns to the shed. Possibly - a chance to record. In addition - working towards publishing a Prose and Poetry zine?

Best wishes and worst wishes

From (from)

Harry