Airbury Academy Volume I

How exciting, it's the proof copy of my second self-published book, Airbury Academy Volume I. Why was the first volume second to be published, and the fourth volume first? There's a good reason, but I can't be bothered explaining it here. Anyway, it looks good!

Dripping Tree

It's been raining today, and the rain has made green patterns on the pale limbs of the eucalyptus tree next door. I've never seen this effect before!

Top Ten Flashback: November 5, 1994

Welcome to the Australian singles charts from 20 years ago today. This is a particularly memorable top 10 for me, as a particular single by my favourite band made its debut appearance. It would only remain in the charts for one week, but it gave that band their highest-charting single in Australia. What else was charting at the time? Let's find out.

10.  The Offspring – "Come Out And Play"
I actually didn't like this song when I first heard it, but it quickly grew on me. The Middle-Eastern sounding bass riff was an element I liked, and its low-budget music video "made it stand out from the usual bilge", according to one of the band members in an interview at the time. The single had a very long chart run despite never getting higher than number 8 – which it peaked at on two separate occasions in December 1994 and February 1995 – an impressive 29 weeks in our top 50.


 
9.  Kylie Minogue – "Confide In Me"
So, this was her 'comeback' single. Can't say I was a fan of it, although the video was quite interestingly done. For me, the most notable thing about this song was that it jumped 30 positions to hit number 1, the third-highest chart jump for 1994 behind "Swamp Thing" by The Grid (34 places, 43 to 9) and "The Sign" by Ace Of Base (32 places, 41 to 9).




 
8.  Luther Vandross & Mariah Carey – "Endless Love"
What's the bet this inane ballad was recorded separately by the two performers? You should know my feelings on ballads by now. Drivel. They should have deleted the "Luther Van...& Mariah Carey" off the cover, as well as the song title, so that it just read "dross", which'd be quite apt, I reckon.




 
7.  Tina Arena – "Chains"
"Meh!" That was my reaction upon hearing this sleep-inducing tedium. It sure wasn't "I Need Your Body", that's for sure. And it'd all started out so promisingly as well.





 

6.  Nine Inch Nails – "Closer"
Or "Closer To God", as it says on the cover artwork. I could never work out why. I could only hear this song on Take 40 Australia, as Rage never aired the video. And with good reason, you might add. When I first heard the song, I thought "I thought Nine Inch Nails were a heavy metal band?".



 
5.  Madonna – "Secret"
This was the first single from Madonna's album Bedtime Stories, which I bought dirt-cheap on cassette in India in 1997, and as the title implies it was enough to send you to sleep. I honestly don't recall anything notable about it. But then I was in India for a month and had to listen to something besides Bollywood bhangra.






4.  Nirvana – "About A Girl" ºº
This was what I had been keeping my beady eyes out for while watching Rage 20 years ago today! Almost exactly seven months after the untimely death of Kurt Cobain, this single from their MTV Unplugged appearance was due to chart, and when I watched the chart countdown, there it was at number 4. Being a limited-edition single of 5000 copies, they all sold out, which was enough to get it into the chart for one glorious week. (Actually, it apparently charted for a second week having dropped back to number 76, but the full top 100 information was well beyond my grasp, especially in 1994.)



3.  Boyz II Men – "I'll Make Love To You"
No thanks.










 
2.  Bon Jovi – "Always"
Here comes the single which holds the dubious record of spending the most weeks at number 2 (seven) without getting to number 1, for the entire six year period from 1990 to 1995. And as someone who couldn't stand this power-ballad claptrap, I can't say I was disappointed about this.






1.  Silverchair – "Tomorrow"
Hey, remember when Australian musicians used to get into the Australian singles charts? No? Well they did 20 years ago. Remember when 15 year old boys used to get to number 1 with their debut single? No? Good, because this is the first time it happened, to my knowledge. I actually prefer the 'single' version of this song to the album version that followed. Although Silverchair were lumbered with the dreaded 'grunge' tag, this sounds like blues-rock to me, with more of a frayed edge to it. And that ain't bad, mister.

Japanese Video Tapes

I lived in Japan from 2001–2002, and in that time, I purchased a lot of VHS videos to watch at home. I got a lot of them cheap from ex-rental shops. But they do take up a lot of space, and I'm thinking of getting rid of most of them as I already have pretty much all the programmes on DVD now, or digital files. But here's a look at some of what I amassed. Some VHS sets come in different coloured cassettes:

The videos above are the set of 7 that make up the British comedy series The Thin Blue Line, from 1995–1996, starring Rowan Atkinson. The video covers are below. (By the way, the series was subtitled, not dubbed.)

Here's the set of 6 videos of the early 2000s anime series Burn-Up X. 

And finally the Mr. Bean series, with identical cover art to the original.

Now, git outta 'ere!

Airbury Academy IV: Now On Sale!

Here it is, Airbury Academy Volume IV – the comic I've been working on since November 2012, set about self-publishing in mid-February, got my proof copy of on March 6, and received 30 copies fresh from the printer today! I've had work published before in magazines, but never my own book, so this is pretty special.

If you want to buy a copy, you can click here to buy online. Or, you could send me an email and tell me your address, which is easy if you live in Australia. If you don't, the first option may be easier.

Thanks go out to Dave Piper who helped a lot through the pre-printing process and also with the logo you see on this very cover. Check his stuff out at Sunday ink!

Wall Or Nothing: Painting A Mural

Rob Scholten and I have been painting a mural in David Street, Preston, in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. Ben, the owner of an Eastern-themed home goods and furniture store called Funky Stuff, asked him to do it and supplied the paint. It was Rob's design; he has done murals before – I was just adding flourishes, but it was interesting to work on street art in public for the first time.

We started the work in December 2013 and Rob had just put the finishing touches to it. Here's a visual record of our progress.

The wall originally was bright orange, 30 metres long and 10 metres high. Rob started by making lines in spray paint.

  

It needed to incorporate Buddha, and this is Rob's preliminary sketch.

In the early stages, using the roller and line work.

Embrace the wall, man!
 

Almost there...getting to this stage took about 5 sessions, lasting until sunset.

And finally, in March 2014 it's complete.

Lino Carving: Airbury Logo

I'm gearing up towards the possibility of getting Airbury IV printed, so the cover art has to look decent. After showing the rough version around it became apparent that the logo or header needed to be improved. The rigorous precision of the words "Airbury Academy" in the Trajan Pro typeface looked nice, but didn't really stand out. And if anything has to stand out, it's the title, right?

So the other day I got this small piece of lino I'd had since my TAFE days and transferred the header onto it in reverse, then used my lino-carving tools to carve the lettering in relief.

Using black ink and a roller, I made a few prints onto cartridge paper. Each print was different, with its own 'character'. It gave a pleasingly rustic and handmade look, as befitting the titular Academy which started in the 16th century. The pages above were scanned and a comp image was made...

And dropped into Photoshop, the end result being quite satisfying. Maya will feature on the cover for Volume IV, holding a snowball, or rather a snowman's head with carrot attached. More news on the possibility of the book will be coming soon!

Instrument Cushions

A series of paintings I did on four cushion covers, with a musical instrument theme. The paintings were done in fabric paint, using a stencil brush.

Top Ten Flashback: January 28, 1989

Today I look back once again at the top 10 Australian singles chart from this date 25 years ago, and it's one of the earliest charts I remember watching on Rage, having first watched ABC's mammoth music video show in late 1988 or thereabouts. As the final year of the 1980s got under way, some long-established artists were enjoying their final waning moments of popularity (chart-wise). So, who comprised our top ten in the week ending Saturday, January 28, 1989?

10.  Transvision Vamp – "I Want Your Love"
This is what 'the kidz' were listening to in the '80s – a bit of raucous rawk n' rawl from England. We all know who Wendy James is (well, those of us who were there at the time), but look at that dude on the left there – I didn't know Sid Vicious was also in this band!*

*I'm joking, of course. You don't need to comment on that.






9.  Robert Palmer – "She Makes My Day"
I'll bet she does, pal. She's probably one of those models in your other video. And what's with that scrawly writing on the sleeve? All very Phil Collins, isn't it.









8.  Yazz – "The Only Way Is Up"
I have an issue of Select magazine from 1994 in which Yazz's One By One is reviewed and the reviewer, one Clark Collis, writes "No one who admits to collecting cushions as a hobby should ever be allowed inside a recording studio". Amazing. I have since scoured the internet (i.e. 28 seconds peering at Google search results) trying to determine if Yazz actually does collect cushions ([citation needed], after all) but have drawn a blank. Anyway, this late-'80s acid house tune has grown on me and I quite like it, even though the vocals are in a register a bit too high for my liking.




7.  The Proclaimers – "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)"
How I wished they'd spelt the title "I'm Gonnae Be" in keeping with their Scots lingo, but still, this is one of the best songs of the '80s, for me. They really rocked it out when they played it at Live 8, it was ace. It proves that so many people still love the song and can belt out every word. 500 miles is 804 kilometres, by the way.






6.  Mental As Anything – "Rock And Roll Music"
Ah, Young Einstein. I couldn't really recall the song (or the movie come to think of it), but the thing I really liked about this band was their name. Not much else to day, let's move on.









5.  1927 – "If I Could"
If I could, I would. I would if I could, but I can't. You get the idea. This song is a classic, and I'll see anyone outside who disagrees. To be honest the production could do with a bit of a 21st century remaster, but this is a song from 1988, and its impact lies in its simplicity. Whether you pay attention to Eric Weideman's lyrics about the male half of a couple always feeling like they can't do enough, or you just like the melody, it's a standout Australian '80s track. Its peak position was number 4, the biggest hit for 1927.



4.  The Traveling Wilburys – "Handle With Care"
Somebody get this song away from my ear'oles quick smart. It's not the quality of the musicianship, because obviously there are some accomplished artists here. It's because I cannot stand Roy bloody Orbison. His singing sounds like he has a particularly urgent case of diarrhoea, and if his vocals were removed from this song (and every other song he recorded for that matter) I'd be much happier.





3.  Womack & Womack – "Teardrops"
That naked baby on the sleeve cover is beyond tacky – not something you want to look at while lying back in a hammock in a wooden-floored room filled with potted plants with a turntable next to you and this record sleeve in your hand – but I do like the song, and a lot more than I did 25 years ago. I didn't like it much back then, as I wasn't much of a fan of understated grooves. Sadly denied a number 1 placing by a bunch of old hippies (see below).





2.  Kylie Minogue & Jason Donovan – "Especially For You"
Yeesh! The infamous Neighbours duet that even one of the song's producers didn't like (Pete Waterman, if'n ya must know). I'm ambivalent about the song – don't like it, don't hate it – but that cheeseballeriffic part towards the end of the video of them embracing while a collage of photos scrolls past in the background is somehow rather endearing. Again, denied a number 1 placing by aforementioned hippies (below).





1.  The Beach Boys – "Kokomo"
I don't mind this song, but it took a few listens before I realized how inane the lyrics are. The tune itself isn't bad, and also the harmonies, but still it's not a song I fondly recall listening to. I just remember it well, that's all. Its ubiquity in 1988-89 probably means I'm in the same boat as plenty of other people. And that boat is sailing away to Aruba. Or Jamaica...aargh! I'll stop now.

Sketch Party

Today I went on a day of sketching in a group at the Melbourne Museum, an excellent place to sketch things, I might add. Especially animals. Because – well, they're dead, aren't they.

Thanks to Luis, Josh and Romi for allowing me to photograph their sketches, and Youbi for organizing the whole thing.

Here are the sketches – first, a couple of dinosaurs...

A smiling deer.

Some biological fancy from Romi.

Luis did this rat-like critter.

This one's mine – an 1880s mail coach.

Portraits.

Yes it is, Josh. And there's a rabbit with a Nazi armband, too.

Comic Stamping Workshop

Rob Scholten and I attended a Comic Stamping workshop today at the City Library. It was a blistering hot day and good to be inside. The workshop was given by Youbi Lee and her friend Romi Park, and the aim was to create a comic-like image using little rubber stamps, which they had fashioned themselves.

Here's my effort. They really liked it, but I don't know what it means.

The City Library had a 'doodle wall' set up, which anyone could draw on. The four of us set about covering up some white space. Can you tell who drew what?

Now, get lost!