Guest Blog - Daniel from Around Wine - How much!? - 11.1.12
How much for a cup of coffee bottle of wine!?
I first encountered the world of Angry Britain in its infancy. I get so annoyed by keytones and clicks emanating from people’s mobile phones on public transport that I wondered if there was a support group. Lo and behold the powers of Google lead me to Mr AB. I promptly vented and a short while after, this time powered by the marvel that is twitter, I was honoured with a visit to my shop by Mr AB himself.
I work in the world of wine and one of the biggest gripes within the wine trade is about why people who are not wine enthusiasts are reluctant to spend more than about £6 on a bottle of wine. The UK average is about £5. That’s not to say people won’t shell out double that on something special from time to time, but in a world where a mocha-chocca-frappa-flavoured-skinny-caramel-flat white can cost up to £3 for a Grande, the mind boggles. If you take into account that the duty and vat on a bottle of £6 wine is £2.81 (£1.81 duty and £1 vat), when you deduct profit, transport and packaging, you are getting about 50p worth of wine. That’s 66p/litre. Petrol is how much? A litre of Coke is about £1!
Now, big brand, big volume wine is a mass produced homogenised product designed to taste blandly the same year in year out. Wine enthusiasts can generally accept that if you are looking for something made in a similar way to paint, then you are unlikely to be willing to pay over the odds. The thing is that there are a lot of craftsmen and artists out there, working very hard by hand to make an individual high quality product, that for just a few pounds extra, will give you so much more pleasure.
One of the reasons Britain has been cultured into paying less is because 80% of wine in the UK is sold by supermarkets, most often on promotion. The scale of supermarkets is not geared up to delivering you a handmade product (with the odd exception) and so big brands rule. This is the second biggest gripe in the wine trade. It is quite particular to the UK. In many European countries and the United State of America, wine is viewed as a lot more than a posh way to get drunk. The good stuff at £10+ is considered to be a luxury worth paying for.
I don’t drink coffee. From time to time, perhaps 5 times per year, I’ll ask for a sweetened espresso, if the restaurant I am in doesn’t serve Red Bull by the glass. The big question is why do far more of the general public happily pay £2+ per day for a coffee but not more than £6 for a bottle of wine. Surely if nothing else, our society has been drinking alcohol longer than flat whites? One theory is that it’s about ‘drinking in’ and enjoying the coffee shop experience plus you can drink and drive on it, but is that it? When friends ask me, “Do I want to go for a coffee?”, my reply is usually, “No, a pint.”
Next time you are going to buy a bottle, go to a wine shop (or shop on-line) instead of the supermarket and see if you can talk yourself into spending that extra cup of coffee’s worth on top of your usual bottle price. If you see me shopping in there at the same time, please turn off your keytones.
Daniel Primack, @winerackd, www.aroundwine.co.uk
Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror '15 Million Merits' Preview C4 Sunday 9.30pm - 9/12/11
Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror Preview C4 Sunday 9pm - 12/11/11
Karma Police - 26/11/11
And here it is, confirmed after we broke the story last night on Twitter at 7:18pm, Dirty Digest is no more. Pray a minute's silence.
Karma - It'll get you in the end.
Hard to Digest - 18/11/11
It's not very often I feel the need to start a blog post with an apology, but here it is. I'm sorry. I'm sorry to all of you who stayed up late or set your Sky+ boxes to support and mock me last night when I was supposed to be featured on E4's 'Comedy' Panel Show Dirty Digest.
They cut me, not once but twice.
The feature I was in was called 'The Blender'. I'd been asked by the production team to go to the studio having sent a tweet about the show last week calling it 'Like the Wright Stuff's drunken Christmas Party'. I didn't know when I got the call at the time that I'd actually be part of the show, I thought it was just to be an audience member.
Anyway, battling the nerves I got on with it, miked up and ready to take the flack, which came from presenters Michelle De Swarte, Joe Lycett, AJ Odudu and Dan Schrieber. The intro contained a huge plug for AngryBritain and I'd said that I watched last week and 'expected to see Matthew Wright staggering around pissed on stage and throwing up in a shredder' - the usual AngryBritain stuff.
Joe Lycett had a little pop and asked how many real friends I had. I gestured '1' and then implied it was my 'right hand'. And the rest of it I don't really remember. They briefly came back to me during Dan's X-Factor feature, but frankly I wasn't funny and deserved that cut. Cock.
Now you know AngryBritain is always fair, so the presenters to their credit welcomed me for a drink afterwards and took time to say hello to who, let's face it, to them was just some shitty blogger off the internet. AJ in particular was lovely, as was Joe and I chatted with both for a little while.
I spoke at some length with the producers about AngryBritain, our Twitter and what we do, the telly thing in particular. They'd said that my bit was great so naturally, being a massive show-off and attention seeker I spent all day yesterday tweeting about the show encouraging you to tune in and give me a taste of my own medicine. After all, after 18mths slagging off other shows and building a reputation for it, it's only fair I can take it too.
But, nothing. Cut. Removed. Like Frankie Cocozza from the M&S advert.
No phone call, no email, no tweet in advance to warn me. And given I'd emailed the production crew that day to say I'd leveraged some of AngryBritain's VERY influential media contacts to watch the show that night to see me, that was pretty poor. Let's just say, it's been an interesting morning in my inbox.
It's not the being cut that's disappointing because shit happens, it's the fact I made you lot stay up and endure 60 minutes of Dirty Dire-gest when the production crew knew I wasn't going to be on it. Frankly I don't recall seeing a handle on the side of my head, and don't appreciate being made of mug of in front of you, my loyal and trusted audience that I've worked fucking hard to build.
So there you go, again apologies for last night. I promise you I was there, sat behind Dan Schrieber, on a table with the light, black & white checked shirt, orange watch.
As ever, AngryBritain wouldn't exist if it wasn't for you, our followers and fans and we got it wrong yesterday. Sorry.
That's showbiz.
The Royally Brilliant Legion - 1/11/11
Many thanks for your e-mail and sight of your blog. We here at The RBL believe the wearing of poppies is something for society to determine, not for us to dictate. There are two reasons for this stance.
The first is that no one should be forced to wear a poppy, or forced to allow their employees to wear a poppy. The poppy represents sacrifice in the cause of freedom; it must respect other's freedoms even when that means a choice not to wear the poppy or to allow the poppy to be worn.
If an employee feels their freedom has been curtailed then that is between them and their employers, it is not between us and the employer.
Others may take a dim view and the shop may be criticised -- in fact it most certainly will. But that criticism should come from the public, not us.
The second reason is more practical - there are cases, such as hospital wards, where the poppy can't be worn for health or safety reasons. We are in no position to adjudicate on these.
We are of course always delighted anyone chooses to wear a poppy with pride. But we believe that the poppy represents the freedoms won by sacrifice. I can also confirm that, as is often the case with these situations, the companies involved resolved the issues very swiftly and the online reports were greatly exaggerated.
Many thanks for your kind words regarding the Appeal. With best wishes.
Christine Cobbold
PA to Head of Poppy Appeal
Ban the madness - 31/10/11
For 2 minutes on Remembrance Sunday at 11am every year Britain falls silent to remember those who fought for Britain. As a nation we come together as one for those two minutes and immediately after return to our normal lives, the lives we have thanks to those who fought for Britain in the wars and those still fighting unwinnable wars for us now.
This is why today I'm finding my blood boiling reading tweets and news articles about several large companies who have allegedly banned their staff from wearing poppies throughout this remembrance period. Despite the almost instant withdrawal and social media led public denials by these companies, including Poundland, McDonalds and The Body Shop, the fact of the matter is that these 'ban stories' came from somewhere and must have some substance. We all know that in today's Britain we aren't allowed to have an opinion or offend, and we're merely one government away from wearing numbered jumpsuits, but it's about time we collectively grew a pair of bollocks and stood up for what's right. Remembrance Day is an British institution like Tea and Scones, Cricket and The X-Factor, and as a nation we'd be all the poorer without it.
Whatever the reason a ban like this isn't a companies decision to make, it's down to the individual's choice. As for offending the minority well frankly, tough shit. It's thanks to those we remember on Remembrance Sunday that the minority have the right to be offended.
AngryBritain.com fully supports your choice to wear a poppy and so infuriated are we that we will now name and shame companies who ban it. If you hear of a ban, drop me a line here at AngryBritain.com and I'll add their names to my roll-call of shame.
If you're tweeter and want to support us, please RT the following Tweet
Dear Companies, It is not for you to decide whether your staff wear a poppy. Get over your politically correct selves pronto please #111111
Buy a poppy today, wear it with pride and observe the silence on Remembrance Sunday - no matter who you work for.
AngryBritain has been on Twitter for a couple of years now building our followers steadily, now nearly at 20,000.
It's always a pleasant surprise to wake up to messages from people telling us they've seen one of our tweets in the press. This morning is just such an example, but it's a shame as it probably means at some point today I will be bundled into the back of a black 4x4 by Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones and interrogated by Mi5. And if I'm really lucky, some sort of anal probing.
So in case you don't hear from me again I'd just like to say it's been fun, and thank you for your continued support - it's why we do it.
The End of the world by AngryBritain - 8.7.11
It’s been an interesting and sensational week in Fleet St.
Unless you’ve been living in a cave this week you will know about the phone hacking that has allegedly gone on at the offices of the News of the World, and up until yesterday afternoon most would have naturally assumed that the paper would ride the wave of hate and live to write another day.
However, it wasn’t to be and just before 5pm the staff were told, by the paper’s ex-editor during the time the allegations are alleged to have taken place, Rebekah Brooks, that the paper was closing and that Sunday’s edition would be its last.
When you are heavily involved in Social Media, like we are at AngryBritain.com a story like this is fascinating to follow, minute by minute updates are available from thousands of sources both internal and external to the story along with comment and opinion from you, the public.
Twitter as we know has hit the headlines more than once for breaking news and stories as they happen, and yesterday was another great example of its potency to do so. Twitter perhaps more so than Facebook has provided a voice for the public to share their opinions, and a place for that opinion to be robustly discussed and shared.
Until the advent of social media the public didn’t really have a forum to express how they felt, their only voice was via the very media they may have had an opinion about, as such, it would hardly have been unbiased.
Looking back at the sensational events of this week, you have to wonder how much of part social media has played in the downfall of what, to be fair, was a hugely popular and well read 168 year old newspaper, and the subsequent sad loss of the jobs of 200 journalists, the vast majority of whom had nothing to do with the phone hacking allegations.
Had the public not had their Twitter voice could the campaign against the News of The World have gathered pace with such ferocity? Or the strength of feeling become so widely known leading to its major advertisers withdrawing their spend and News International being left with so little choice of what to do?
It seems to me that the balance of influence is moving away from the media and into the hands of the people who digest it, the public.
There will clearly always be a place for the ‘proper’ media in Britain where the public will receive balanced, informed and well reported stories, but perhaps the old ‘Spitting Image’ image of the media really has had its day, just like the News of the World.
R.I.P
One Hundred & Forty Characters by @chrisfloyduk - 1.7.11
In July 2010 I decided to begin photographing people that I follow on Twitter. The idea for this came at a moment when I realised I had not seen or spoken to any of my best half a dozen real and actual friends for over a month. Some of those people on Twitter I communicate with several times a week, in bursts of 140 characters or less, and yet I had never met any of them. As we are now well and truly living in a digital age I am aware that this state of being is only going to deepen and the traditional forms of friendship, although they will not go away anytime soon, are going to have to make more room for the new way of doing things. Where Facebook might be considered as the place in which you tell lies to all the people you went to school with, I had begun to think of Twitter as the place where you tell the truth to all those that you wish you’d gone to school with. The project rolled on indefinitely for almost a year but when, one day, I counted up the number of subjects to date and came to a number in the mid one hundred and thirties, I immediately knew where this had to end. So here they are. My new friends. 140 characters. No more and no less.
I am one week short of taking a full year to get to this point and, for those of you that are interested, here is the original post from July 2010, explaining it all right at the start. Reading it back, I am struck by how much my inspiration stayed the course. The digital nature of being a photographer today remained the prime raison d’etre for the project. Humans are pack animals, despite what we may or may not believe at any given point in our daily/weekly/monthly/yearly cycle of highs and lows. I am definitely happier when in the presence of stimulating company and the demise of film and all the trips to film related places (photographic stores, labs, printers etc) has played a big role in the erosion of those opportunities, as well as leaving a huge social void that is yet to be filled by something equally physical or new. Nor is anything likely to, we are too wedded to the convenience of the computer and the immediacy of digital delivery. I mean, come on, who is going to go back to sitting around waiting for clip tests ever again? Or be full steam ahead with heavenly raptures of transcendence for the deadline dodging motorcycle courier? Then there’s international clients. Fedexing contact sheets? You’re out of your frigging mind. So far, Twitter has plugged the hole, in the sense that it has created an opportunity for me to talk to people on a daily basis while I’m at work. What constitutes me being at work is vast swathes of time during the week, where I am sat alone at a computer for hours and hours and hours. The furthest my intellect gets stretched during these periods is when I get to do ‘Ctrl+C’ followed by ‘Ctrl+V’.
In addition, I’m also really, really nosey and I wanted to see what all these people that I had begun to ‘talk to’ were like and, equally importantly, what they sounded like. I needed to meet them. Further down this post is an audio/visual slide show that features a whole load of the one forty alongside an audio edit of many of them talking about Twitter. What it reveals, that Twitter does not reveal by itself, are the accents. I love just hearing all the accents and I love that the British Isles, despite what we may think about the gradual homogenisation of our regional dialects, still throws up a wonderful ploughman’s platter of chat. I played it to my dad, who is a 69 year old retiree, out of the world for 4 years, and does not engage in Twitter or any other forms of social media. After listening to it he said: “I’m not so pessimistic for the future after hearing that. In fact, I’m quite optimistic. People are still thoughtful, still intelligent and still funny. We’ll be alright.”
I never joined Facebook, or any of those other ones, so why has Twitter, after two and a half years, remained entrenched in my daily life? I can only come to one conclusion. Whereas Facebook seems to allow the user to construct a perceived or projected existence for themselves through the deployment of various convenient aids, Twitter just strips it all away and leaves the user with nothing but the utilitarian tool of 140 characters and the imagination of language. Over a sustained period of time or patch of ground you are always going to betray yourself. By that I mean that you will, layer by layer, reveal who you are and this will continue to be an ongoing and ever revelatory process. Other users will continue to be attracted to that or not, and vice versa. It’s really quite binary, whilst being relentlessly deep and wide, which I like. A lot.
As someone said to me, Twitter is “a huge, massive, endless free flowing conversation with lots of interesting, witty people.” What more is there to say? If you don’t get it, then you just don’t get it
And so we come to the end of an interesting, exciting, frustrating, affirming month for the band. Welcome to the vagaries of the music industry !
Back in my corporate days the common catchphrase and ultimate goal for any small to medium sized business was the process of of "good to great". If we've learnt from the experiences of Kovak over the course of this month, it's that a series of little tweaks can really impact on that process. We've had a fantastic, fun, full month to be honest - for a comparatively unknown, foreign band to go out to the wilds of Canada (well, Toronto) and then be named "critics choice" in a festival of over 650, mainly signed bands is, by anyone's reckoning, quite an achievement. Of course I serve my general observations with a healthy dollup of bias, but with the help of a fantastic stylist and a highly motivated PR team, Kovak really made a significant impact whilst at NXNE.
It's a hell of an ask to leap from popular, local gigging band, to suddenly be interviewed on live television in front of 1.2 million people. The emotional and mental demands of that kind of thing can't be underestimated but the band did us all proud. Stephen LeDrew, the 'Pip' Schofield of Canadian daytime television even took it upon himself to come to the gig, and wrote me a lovely email saying "Kovak are terrific, I can't wait to get them on Canadian TV again". The fact this transition felt so natural and right really does say to me that the process of "good to great" for the band is not too far off.
So what now ? Well here we stumble across the frustrating part of the process. There were two A&R Scouts from the world's largest record company at the gig - they stayed for the whole show and then asked to meet the band afterwards, which as anyone in the industry will tell you is an unusual turn of events. A representative from Canada's largest booking agent was there too and has professed to love the band. It's chicken and egg though. The agent wants label support, the label will want profile. What to do !
Well UK - it's time for you to step up to the plate ! We're going to be pushing the band's profile shortly across the UK with some genuinely exiting festival and television appearances including a showcase live on MTV. The more support we can get from you guys too, the better - please do come and "like" the band on the Kovak facebook page, have a listen to the tracks uploaded on Soundcloud, and start shouting about them. The last female fronted real pop band................probably No Doubt. The last British female fronted "real" pop band ? Well......it's about time to get another going.
Here's a list of the gigs we've got coming up, do come along. I promise you won't be disappointed.
July 27th - The Green Door Store, Brighton - Juice FM Music Showcase (Headline Appearance)
August 2nd - Playgroup Festival
August 27th - MTV Live, Charles Dickens World, Chatham, Kent
September 8-11th - Bestival (TBC)
September 19th - Shakedown Festival, Stanmer Park, Brighton
The minute I was invited to straddle a Hell’s Angel bike outside the Hard Rock Café shortly after touching down in Toronto… I knew I was gonna like this place. Add to that being styled and hanging out with the lovely Renee Beach, venturing on a rollercoaster of PR through our networker extraordinaire Karine and LOTS of meaty dinners and you’ll see why I’m a happy bunny… Of course the cherry on the Toronto pie was our gig at El Mocambo which not only hit the sweet spot of the audience (and mine), but saw a whole host of industry people show up as well. Fast forward a few hours and we’re ROCKING away to the impossibly tight and ridiculously named Bastard, finally a chance to check out what NXNE has to offer besides us ‘kooky electro poppers’ (seriously, check that band out). So, will we be back? Ehhhhhhm, Hell Yeah! Even if only for Karl to satisfy his Poutine craving.
Oh, and did I mention we've just been named as 'Critic's Choice' at NXNE from 650 bands - cool!
Oof! I’ve just landed back on British soil and I never got to eat my Canadian Poutine, mustn’t grumble though as I did get whisked away in the Canadian high life with the darling Renee Beach (stylist to the rock Gods) and enjoy a pumping set with Kovak at the legendary El Mocambos (Elmo’s to the locals) and a live TV interview on one of Toronto’s largest networks. At one point very late in the evening I seem to remember fitting into one of Madonna’s actual dresses used for the Vogue shoot – a little breezy Madge, even with the heat of Toronto.
Well as much as I’d like to say it’s good to be back home….it isn’t, though I do have a distinct feeling that Kovak will soon be returning to Canada, what with the Naked News interview and all…did I say AND ALL, yes, for sure, those Canadians EH!
Anyways, I’ve gotta return, unfinished business with that Poutine I’ve heard so much about, though I am a bit jealous about our manager staying on to party it up with Lady Ga Ga….that’s reason enough to come back!
Kovak's album "HEROES & HIGH HEELS" is available to download from iTunes, Napster & Amazon NOW! www.myspace.com/kovakuk
Is it time to get tough on Social Media? - 16.6.11
The Times reported earlier this week that a female juror is facing prison for allegedly using Facebook to contact an acquitted defendant in an expensive series of drugs trials in Manchester to openly discuss the jurors deliberations online, causing the trial to eventually collapse.
It is believed to be an increasing trend to openly discuss trials on the internet, which lawyers and judges believe is a growing problem.
Unfortunately for the juror, her case has now been heard by the Attorney General, Dominic Grieve who has been very vocal in the media about how social media users need to start being punished for flouting the law via the courts.
The Ryan Giggs affair is another recent example of how rumours on social media site Twitter caused problems in the British legal system, leading to him being named in Parliament and a huge backlash online. This was despite him having been awarded a gagging-order, or ‘superinjunction’ as they have come to be known.
We do enjoy freedom online with the ability to say what we are feeling, thinking and doing at any time of the day or night with, up until now, very little recourse, but we have to wonder how long this will last.
Today the female juror has received an 8 month custodial sentence and we can be sure that a wave of others will follow to send the message clearly to the public that the courts will not tolerate blatant disregard for the law. I would also expect new legislation to appear specifically aimed at social media’s interaction with the courts, particularly when expensive trials like this one.
But there’s the rub, it will go punished if the user can be found. It’s very easy for anyone, even me, to set up a temporary online account using a temporary email address to cover my social tracks should I be so inclined to ‘start a riot’.
Our online personas can be a a made-up character or a real reflection of us and our real lives and as cases like the one above become more common, some of us may regret what we’ve posted online in our own name. It therefore comes down to an individual’s awareness of what they are doing when posting content on our favorite sites like FaceBook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Perhaps it’s time to take a step back before hitting ‘send’ and begin thinking about the possible consequences of our online actions?
10am - Juicy Stuff Interview - http://www.juicystuff.ca/modules/AMS/ - phone
15:15 - Aux TV
20:00 - Internet Radio station (not sure on name yet)
20:30 - Annelies styling with Renee
Tomorrow
8:00 - Renee arrives for hair / makeup
10:00 - Casie Stewart Interview (Canada's leading lifestyle blogger, also coming to gig)
10:30 - Naked News (they're also filming the gig)
12:15 - CP24
22:00 - Gig !
"Today we're mixing with rock royalty. Well, the partners of rock royalty as Annelies is being taken out shopping and styled by the beautiful Renee Beach, best known for being the ex-partner of The Cult's singer, Ian Astbury, and the star of their video Edie (Ciao Baby) here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpkVt9XTdt
In other news, along with the 3 TV interviews, Annelies will be stretching her linguistic skills by interviewing in French with Radio Canada, and later meeting Canada's version of a blogging Oprah Winfrey, Casie Stewart. We've also found out that the gig is being filmed live by NakedNews.com ! Hopefully the president of Universal Music, who is coming along to the gig, will be as impressed as we are at that turn of events !
Other than that we've been calorie unconscious, stuffing ourselves with burgers, peanut butter / chocolate puddings and Moosehead beer. Karl is also getting upset by my snoring.....!"
If you’ve not seen Kovak on stage, that’d not mean a great deal, in which case, call me Martin. I stand behind a bunch of old synths and occasionally, impress with my cowbellery (I did just make up that word)… Oh, I play the bass guitar too but you’ll never see that, I mostly do that whilst nobody is looking and stick a recording of it in my computer machine…
Hey there I'm Annelies, aka Mummalies: the singer, poser and hardcore talker of the band. Apart from singing I like anything that ends in ‘urfing or ‘oarding like kitesurfing, snowboarding – you get the picture. You could say I’m a girly tomboy adrenaline woman singer chick, which rolls off the tongue rather nicely I think. I also love sparkles and bright colours and occasionally I go on naturist holidays. I actually think everyone should either be naked or in sparkly/colourful clothes. One of the two. It's KOVAK law and Dazza knows this as he regularly gets naked too although he didn’t admit this in his profile. I'm always either singing or talking. It's a constant thing. The rest of the band love it. Big sweaty man love. And to you, hopefully a fan, I give you soft cuddly woman love, because I love fans. That’s it.
I’m Karl the guitar player in Kovak and runner on the spot.
I was born on my brothers birthday when he was 4. It's the same day as Wills and Kate got married, but the Queen made it a bank holiday for us. She knows her stuff.
My brother plays drums in Kovak. He is bald with levitating sideburns.
I’ve been having my kitchen done at my flat so literally had to move boxes to get to my guitar and hunt around for my pedal board (which is incidentally part of my old piano I sawed up) and blow the dust off before heading off to practice.
The new tracks are sounding like a mix between Abba, the Eurythmics and Donna Summer; and there ain’t nothing wrong with that kids!
We're excited. So much so that I'm running on the spot. Right now.
Hello Dazza the Drummer here!
Being 'The Drummer' i'm obviously the most important one.
Playing in an unsigned band is so much better than being in a signed band. However I'd like to try being signed just so I can say that with confidence.
A typical day for me is having a nice big Brekky (Full English) then down to the studio for some drum takes.
Then i get in my 1984 Gold Rolls Royce and drive it into my massive swimming pool.
I then have a glass of Champers and sit down to watch my box set of Columbo in my Purple Robe for the rest of the day. (Unless i'm flying of to Rio to support the Rolling Stones)
Pretty cool ah!
Kovak's manager Andy Hollis of 74 Promotions gives us his thoughts on the state of British pop and why he's so passionate about bringing Kovak into the maintstream:
Pop Will (literally) Eat Itself......
It's a long hard road trying to break a pop act these days. The competition is stiff with the likes of Lady Gaga, Britney, Kylie and the numerous "manufactured" boy and girl bands dominating the airwaves, as they and their like have done for the past twenty odd years. Add to that equation the quick fix solutions that get churned from the X Factor / BGT type shows ad nauseum and it feels like a seriously uphill battle.
So is this the right place to be in, musically, creatively and for a country so rich in history when it comes to producing pop *bands*. Well no, of course not. The industry, in my humble opinion, is hugely short, not in personality per se, but in musical personality. Let me elaborate a bit. Back in the mid to late eighties, the likes of Stock, Aitkin and Waterman (Pete and co, you have much to answer to) realised that the way "forward" for pop music was to find a performer with stage ability, furnish them with pre-written hits, and carefully market and guide the performer on to heady success. Enter Kylie. It's hardly the most original idea, some could say the King himself (no, not Paul, but Elvis) was born of this format, but the problem is that for "pop" music (and by that I mean uncomplicated, catchy, get up and dance because it makes you happy compositions) it's become the only formula that people work by at the moment.
As a result we have a selection of performers - in the main, female solo artists, or boy and girl bands - that are singing songs they have little or no creative input with, written by a relatively small group of "hit-makers" and sprinkled with magic dust by the super producers. The artists job is to shock, sexualise and perform. Hence we have a genre of music that has become desperately homogenous and devoid of personality. Could you interchange Britney, Kylie, Gaga and the like. Of course. JLS and The Wanted ? No problem.
I sat down and listened to a couple of hours of Absolute's 80's radio station yesterday. The run of music during that time included The Eurythmics, The Police, Soft Cell, Culture Club, Style Council, Suzanne Vega, Blondie, Prince. It was fantastic, disparate, interesting music that was laden with the personality of the artist. And it was pop. Could you interchange them ? No chance. Would Debbie Harry be allowed to meander off and start singing in French in 2011 ? Forget it. Did you know all the words and tunes ? Absolutely, and that wasn't just a nostalgic, age related thing. My lodger, a 24 year old "Emo" walked in half way through and joined in every note with a smile on her face.
I was lucky enough the other day to do a talk at a college in front of thirty two 16-18 year olds who were engaging, intelligent and great fun. I posed the question to them - can you name a pop band that exists right now. One that writes and performs their own tunes that wasn't "put together" (sorry McFly fans, that rules you out). There was a long, deathly silence until one of the students triumphantly suggested "The Wombats".
Is that all we're left with Britain !? I have a great deal of respect for The Wombats, but from the country that produced The Beatles as perhaps the Godfathers of Pop and then went on to give us the likes of Eurythmics, The Police (despite the early punk sensibilities, they were still a pop band), Culture Club, Duran Duran, Adam Ant, Erasure........etc etc.......
Hence why I took on Kovak as a management project, and one that I love doing. Working with 4 distinctly individual, talented musicians who produce great, catchy, uncomplicated pop music. Music that gets into your head. Music you want to dance to. Music that stands out from the crowd because it has it's own personality. Not the personality of a nameless writer. Not the personality of a session band playing by numbers. Not the personality of someone performing a song they have no real emotional attachment to, because it doesn't "belong" to them.
It's time for a change before pop literally does eat itself. It's no surprise there's a resurgence of 80's music and the styles of the time. I honestly think people want a bit of personality back into the music, aside from the introspective Indie guitar bands. Of course my hope is that Kovak can spearhead that, and we're excited to be "followed" as we forge onwards over the course of the next month, via this blog.
The trials and travails will be updated by the members of the band, and occasionally by yours truly. Your support, comments, suggestions and criticisms are all welcome !
Here's one of Kovak's earlier tracks 'Electric City Lights'. Keep watching the blog for new tracks during June!
Throughout the month of June we'll be following talented Electro-pop Brighton based four piece Kovak who are trying to get signed in a world of manufactured X-Factor nonsense. There'll be a series of band member profiles, guest blogs, interviews, news, chances to win tickets to see them and video and audio links. We'll follow them as they perform at Toronto's North by North East music festival and are featured and interviewed by the Canadian music press.
Will they make it? Bookmark our blog throughout the month of June to find out!
In keeping with this weeks theme of young people trying to find work, we've been contacted by Pete Goold of Punch Communications who are offerring and amazing opportunity for someone to join their team and become the next big thing in PR, SEO & Social Media. Pete has very kindly written the following guest blog:
Are you, or do you know, a potential PR, Search and/or Social Media superstar that has an appetite for shaping our rapidly changing industry?
If so, Punch is about to launch a search - through this site and social media channels - in the next week or so, to find one or more graduates and/or interns that are interested in joining the team, in either our Midlands or London office.
We think this is a pretty cool opportunity. Not only do we believe that Punch is unique in terms of offering these three services on a stand-alone and, more importantly, an integrated basis - but the industry seems to be growing in agreement about this a strong contender for the way forward. More and more chatter on the web and in social spaces is focusing on how the sector is evolving to accommodate all three components.
Consequently, you could argue that the perfect PR person has changed in recent years. A decade ago, the ideal PR would typically be an extrovert that is able to spot an opportunity and thereafter exert influence through force of persuasion - and perhaps personality. These days, those skills need to be complemented with an aptitude for numerical analysis and an objectivity that is able to read and respond to a situation with the most appropriate solution to a problem.
In short, we believe that the PR skill set has evolved - and we're hugely passionate about offering services such as 'social search' and 'PR-led SEO' alongside traditional activities, such as media relations.
Finally, we love passion, enthusiasm, creativity and energy - traits which are as relevant at a junior level as they are when coupled with many years of experience.
So, please watch this space for more information - or check out our current careers section for the time being (and perhaps send any thoughts you have to working@punchcomms.com). Also, keep an eye on our Twitter and Facebook pages.
Oh and if you have found us via Twitter, we're not so self obsessed to recognise that sometimes it can't hurt to give an idea a little extra push - so please do follow the Punch twitter feed and RT this post before midnight on Friday 3rd June 2011, to be in with a chance to win a kindle (see Terms and Conditions).
As well as a chance to win a Kindle, this is a fantastic opportunity for someone to get into the world of PR and Social Media, so please do RT this blog post.
Loved #Essex? Then you'll love this too. Check out the trailers for E4's new reality show Made in Chelsea.
Made in Chelsea coming to E4 Monday 9th May at 10.15pm
Twitter: @e4Chelsea #madeinchelsea
Money doesn't grow on trees - 20.4.11
Some of you will know that I found myself at the centre of a Facebook storm this week when I was confronted about advertising on AngryBritain.com. I’ve given it some thought now and this is AngryBritain’s official response.
In effect the individual complained that not only is our advertising prominent but also lacks support for UK businesses and produce. The advertising is indeed prominent as you would expect, and my sponsors are several very large international brands with whom I have excellent relationships, so to a certain extent the complainant had a point.
Or did he?
It occurred to me that there still seems to be a perception online that websites and their content are in effect ‘free’ and ‘worthless’, something that Fleet Street in particular has picked up on with the rapid introduction by several publications like The Times of a ‘Paywall’ where you need to pay to view the content.
Sites like mine however, despite what you might think, have very little income and we need to take it from wherever we can. While in effect the content here is ‘free’ there is still a cost in producing, editing and maintaining it, in time, effort and enthusiasm. If a site gains popularity like mine has over the last 12 months, this can almost become a full time occupation, and obviously we all have bills to pay.
When things really get going there are then specialist services that may need to be employed such as PR or SEO to ensure the site stays ahead of the competition – and believe me, these aren’t cheap.
Paywalls have raised a few eyebrows but we really should be asking ourselves why? You wouldn’t expect to walk into a newsagent read a magazine from cover-to-cover and walk out again without paying, so why do we expect this from the online world?
Web users can’t have it all their own way, someone needs to pay for this often great content that is being produced by cash-strapped website owners like me all over the world on a daily basis.
If the readers are enjoying the content but won’t pay for it, then advertisers and sponsors will and they need to understand that.
So how we handled his complaint was to publish it, acknowledge it and call his bluff in our usual style. After all, we have nothing to hide.
‘So shoot me, we all have bills to pay! ’
After all money doesn’t grow on trees.
Thank you all for continuing to support AngryBritain.com and our sponsors.
In the beginning there was MySpace (remember that?) and Bebo, then Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and now Quora and others, all places on the web where we connect and share our thoughts with our virtual friends. Some of these networks like LinkedIn I have more for work than because I want to, others like Quora for example I now have because I'm a bit geeky.
Each though requires time, effort and attention to get most from because by it's very nature you only get out of Social Media what you put in. The idea for this post came this morning when I tweeted 'I currently have 5 social networks open. Do I have a problem?'. The resounding response was 'Yes' and 'Get a life' which is a little ironic given those responses were via a Social Network.
You have to wonder if our increasing 'Social Habit' is at the cost of relationships with real people, do we prefer our virtual friends to our real ones - and do we prefer to communicate with them via their wall or timeline rather than speaking to them in person?
Will we get to a stage where the human race evolves to have a permanently bent neck and an extra texting finger? You may laugh now but look around as you read this, you're surrounded by people staring into a screen, typing at lightning speed with two thumbs into the latest must-have iThing updating their statuses.
'I ate some cheese'.'I just went to the toilet'.'I can't remember the last time I actually spoke to real person. LOL'
Perhaps there will be a completely new breed of Public Relations Agency who will be able to assist the new bent necked, extra digited human race to actually have relations, in public.
So with a Social Media apocalypse looming, perhaps it's time to move away from the wall and re-learn the art of simple conversation.
With the correct grammar.
Jamie's Dream School - Preview 2.3.11
Nearly half of British children leave education without the qualifications they need to succeed. Jamie Oliver was one of them: he left school at sixteen with just two GCSEs.
Now he wants to do something about it. So he’s bringing together some of Britain’s most inspirational and expert individuals to try to persuade twenty young people, with just a handful of qualifications between them, to give education a second chance
In a unique partnership with YouTube, Jamie Oliver is kicking off the search to find Britain’s Dream Teachers. If you know an inspirational teacher who can explain the hardest concepts in the most engaging way, visit www.youtube.com/dreamteachers for a list of the topics students find most challenging
Guest Blog: Natasha Courtenay-Smith - Talk To The Press - 28.2.11
To sell your story or not – what is the right thing to do?
Every week, many normal people find themselves making national headlines, sometimes for the most bizarre and unpredictable of reasons. As that is the case this week for Tom Cowan, the intern who it was revealed on Sunday was accidentally shot by Ashley Cole.
No doubt, he and his family will be besieged by media wanting him to go into full detail of the moment Ashley Cole pulled the trigger. And he will most likely have no idea what is the right thing to do, which is how most people who have press outside their doorstep feel.
Let’s imagine what Tom could be thinking. On one hand, he’s an intern at Chelsea football club, probably either genuinely likes or is completely in awe of Ashley Cole and won’t want to cause any bad feeling. But then there are the cheques for huge sums being waved under his nose, which to any person, let alone a young person starting out in life, are difficult to completely ignore. And let’s not forget the fact that he has been genuinely wronged by Cole. He’s been injured by a gun and at worst, could have been killed. Why should he now stay silent?
Talking to the Press can meet a deep-seated need, but it can also be a nerve racking experience. What if your words become misconstrued? And what if your reputation suffers as a result? It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and not a decision to take lightly.
The best thing for someone such as Tom Cowan to do is get in touch with a specialist story selling agency such as us! Our aim is to help those who need advice in dealing with the media, plus to ensure their experience of speaking about their lives is as positive as possible. Selling a story to the press should be a straight forward, transparent and rewarding experience, not something that is frightening and confusing and that is where we come in. We specialise in dealing with ordinary people, we know how much a story should be worth and which papers will do the best job with it.
Personally, I think Chelsea should give Tom Cowan permission to speak out and make a bit of money from the events that have happened. That way, he will have had his say, with their permission and everyone can move on.
And why should Tom Cowan not speak? The event has happened; his photograph has been obtained and published. Newspapers have put his story on the front page and have made money from the resulting sales. It is surely only right that he now has the change to make a bit of money too, as well as set any records straight.
Guest Blog: Natasha Courtenay-Smith - Talk To The Press - 15.2.11
Every week, through no fault of their own, a number of ordinary people find themselves and their lives making newspaper headlines.
Last week, for instance, we saw three families make national headlines. First, there was the family of Claudia Aderotimi, who died after a botched buttock-enhancement procedure in Philadelphia, then there was the family of Nikitta Grender, who are facing a barrage of press interest in their lives following the heavily pregnant teenager’s murder, and finally there was Ann Timson, who was immediately dubbed ‘Supergran’ when she took on a gang of robbers in Northampton, clobbering them with her handbag.
There are a huge number of reasons that an ordinary person suddenly finds themselves making headlines, from a tragic event or a terrible crime or a moment of heroism. Whatever the reason, the outcome is the same – hoards of journalists turning up on the doorstep, trying desperately to get any scrap of information about the story in question. For the family, this can only add to the upset or stress, and that’s where a specialist press agency like Talk to the Press can help.
Last week, we offered our media management services to Ann Timson, and she welcomed our help. At the time, she had reporters camped on her doorstep and even satellite television trucks outside her house. She had barely dared venture outside for two days, and whilst one might imagine she was basking in her moment of glory, in fact she was stressed, upset, overwhelmed and angry about the reporters continually outside her front door.
We know from experience that most people in Ann’s situation feel the same way and that is why it is an honour to be able to step in. In this sort of situation, we take control, get rid of the press outside and let everyone interested know that all media enquiries must now come through us.
We ease the pressure, by wading through the interview requests and devising a press strategy that the person involved feels comfortable with. Because we know the press, and the people working in it, we are able to negotiate such things as copy or quote approval and make sure interviews are done on the individual in question’s terms, not on the terms of whatever editor is desperate for whatever piece of information.
For us, it’s hugely exciting both to get to meet extraordinary people such as Ann Timson and to make a difficult time in their lives far easier. It was wonderful to see Ann gaining confidence at her photoshoot and even posing with her fists to the camera and a huge grin on her face.
We will continue to help Ann with media and already we have interest from documentary companies interested in working with Ann over the long term.
As Ann’s son Andre said to us this week: It all seems to be coming together nicely thanks to your hard work which we greatly appreciate. Thank-you so much for your patience and the way you are handling everything. We are in good hands.
Guest Blog: Natasha Courtenay-Smith - Talk To The Press - 7.2.11
What stories are the press looking for?
It's not always easy to know whether your own experiences make a good story or not, or whether it is the sort of thing magazines and newspapers would be prepared to pay for.
It's easy to imagine that publications are only looking for gossipy stories involving celebrities or scandal. In fact, they are looking for any story that illustrates the many different issues that affect you and I, and the sky is the limit.
From health stories to crime stories, from body image stories to baby stories, from pet stories to parenting stories, from home renovation stories to wedding stories, from love stories to work stories, there is no human experience that magazines and papers are not interested in.
Of course, scandalous stories and those involving celebrities have their place, but they are just one part of a very big picture. And that picture is all about the complex relationships, emotions, situations and happenings that make up our everyday lives.
Below is an outline of the sorts of stories that newspapers and magazines are interested in.
Caught up in the news Have you suddenly found yourself in the middle of the stories making the headlines? Are you a relative of someone who is in the news at the moment? Or perhaps current changes in the law affect you?
Crime Have you been a victim of a horrendous crime? Or have you solved a crime?
Weight loss Have you lost a large amount of weight and changed your life? Has a new diet resulted in an amazing outcome?
Name and shame Is there individual or organization you would like to name and shame? Is your ex boyfriend a love rat? Or has an official body let you down? Have you had to fight for justice? For example, Julia Cura wanted to talk about her fight for justice for her husband Peter after doctors failed to spot his cancer an astonishing 37 times.
Cosmetic surgery Have you spent thousands on changing your looks? Did you have surgery to look like a celebrity? Do you regret having cosmetic surgery? Do you want to show off your new body in a glossy magazine? Has a cosmetic operation gone wrong?
Your family Do you have an interesting family? Do you have 10 children, or are you in a situation in which traditional roles are reversed?
Celebrity secrets Do you know a secret about a celebrity? Have you had an affair with someone in the public eye?
Paying tribute Perhaps you want to talk about someone close to you who has died.
Addictions Have you experienced an addiction to drugs, drink or sex? Have you recovered from an addiction and now want to help others?
Triumph over tragedy Have you overcome an illness or a disability, and turned your life around for the better? Maybe you've lost a loved one, and gone on to set up a charity in their name? Or perhaps you've turned a campaigner following a tragedy?
Are you an author, a researcher or an inventor? If so, is your novel based on a real life experience? Or have you invented something that could change the way we live?
Your health Have you survived a life threatening illness, undergone a brand new, controversial or alternative treatment, or found a miracle cure? Have you overcome infertility, or spent thousands on fertility treatment?
And there's more.....
Stories about diets, cosmetic surgery, mum and babies, quirky relationships, unusual partners, divorce, dramatic life changes, amusing pets, holidays from hell, ghostly encounters and unusual jobs are all of interest too. Get in touch with Talk to the Press to find out more about selling any sort of story.
Are you a hot couple? BBC Three needs you! - 3.2.11
Guest Blog: Natasha Courtenay-Smith - Talk To The Press - 1.2.11
When Hazel Bowden told us she was the only known women in the UK to have had twins – twice – in under a year, we knew newspapers would be fighting over her story. We secured her a deal with a newspaper and a women’s magazine. Then there was Yasha, who at 7 years old, was the youngest person in the UK to get an ‘A’ for A-level mass, and Cassie, who fell pregnant nine years after going through the menopause, and Karen Johnston, a mum of 10 who had twins aged 54....
From the horse that had been attacked by yobs and went on to have rare 1 in 1000 foals to the best friends who were diagnosed with cancer on the same day and got the all clear just weeks apart, we’ve helped hundreds of people tell their story to the press and secured them hundreds of thousands of pounds in payment.
My name is Natasha Courtenay-Smith and I’m the director of the award-winning press agency Talk to the Press. We specialise in helping people sell stories to national newspapers and magazines, and managing the media strategies of ordinary people caught up in a media storm. We can also help you raise awareness of a particular cause or situation by finding the ‘news’ angle on your circumstances.
We’ve represented many individuals who suddenly and unexpectedly found their lives making headlines, including Kara Hoyte, who made legal history following changes in double jeopardy laws, Katie Hill, who became the youngest person in the UK to have a gastric band, Aled and Laura Williams, who hit the headlines following the birth of their conjoined twins Hope and Faith, Karen Johnston, the mum of 10 who had twins at the age of 54 and Arfan Haque, whose father was killed in a brutal happy slapping attack that took place in front of his 3 year old daughter Mariam.
Plus, we’ve helped people promote their books, raise money for charity, fight for justice, and expose wrongdoing and corruption, or simply tell everyone about their weight loss or achievements! We have even represented Idi Amin’s daughter Khadija, who had never spoken about her father at the time she contacted us.
You’ll have seen our stories in national newspapers such as the Daily Mail, News of the World, Sunday Mirror and the Guardian and in women’s magazines ranging from Marie Claire and Grazia to Take a Break and That’s Life. And the individuals we represent regularly appear on This Morning and Daybreak.
Agencies like Talk to the Press are a vital part of the cycle of news and in bringing up events that might be happening largely unnoticed beyond the realms of your neighbourhood into the national news. When you look at a story in the newspaper or on television, have you ever asked yourself how it got there? Sometimes stories are picked up because they are thrust into the public domain through something like a court case, or sometimes stories are sought out by journalists to tie in with particular trends or research studies.
But in other instances, expert agencies such as Talk to the Press have been involved, finding a news angle in what is happening and contacting appropriate news outlets.
Whatever your story, and whatever your goal in telling it, feel free to contact us for free and confidential advice. From the wierd to the wonderful, we love hearing true life stories and we hope you’ll share yours with us. Likewise, if you have any questions, email me onnatasha@talktothepress.com
To find out more about selling your story, visit www.talktothepress.co.uk Follow us on twitter: www.twitter.com/talktothepress
It's back! #Glee Mondays 9pm only on E4 - 9.1.11
As another school year begins, the Glee kids discover that their elusive popularity still remains outside their grasp. Several things have occurred over the summer break: Finn and Rachel have been and still are dating, despite the fact he considers her “a controllist” with a huge ego; Tina has dumped Artie, and is dating fellow Asian Mike Chang; Puck got a vasectomy; Santana got a boob job; Heather spent her summer lost in the sewers; Slushees are still readily available; and the prevailing opinion among the student body is that Will’s song selections for New Directions sound like they come from “a drag queen’s iPod.”
The arrival of the boys’ new football coach, Shannon Bieste presents a problem. As funds from both Glee Club and the Cheerio’s are diverted to the revitalised team, Will and Sue form the unlikeliest of alliances as they attempt to bring down ‘The Beast’; no mean feat when she stands at 6’1, is an ex maximum security prison officer and can dead lift a Cadillac.
And the drama doesn’t end there; when Emma informs Will that she has begun dating her debonair dentist, he realises what he has thrown away and the arrival of Sunshine Corazon to the Glee Club means Rachel REALLY has to sing for her survival.
And so, as the Darwinian fight for survival begins; old rivalries are cast aside, new alliances are formed and hearts are broken all over again.
How much for a cup of coffee bottle of wine!?
It's not very often I feel the need to start a blog post with an apology, but here it is. I'm sorry. I'm sorry to all of you who stayed up late or set your Sky+ boxes to support and mock me last night when I was supposed to be featured on E4's 'Comedy' Panel Show Dirty Digest.
Many thanks for your e-mail and sight of your blog. We here at The RBL believe the wearing of poppies is something for society to determine, not for us to dictate. There are two reasons for this stance.
For 2 minutes on Remembrance Sunday at 11am every year Britain falls silent to remember those who fought for Britain. As a nation we come together as one for those two minutes and immediately after return to our normal lives, the lives we have thanks to those who fought for Britain in the wars and those still fighting unwinnable wars for us now.
It’s been an interesting and sensational week in Fleet St. 
And so we come to the end of an interesting, exciting, frustrating, affirming month for the band. Welcome to the vagaries of the music industry !
The minute I was invited to straddle a Hell’s Angel bike outside the Hard Rock Café shortly after touching down in Toronto… I knew I was gonna like this place. Add to that being styled and hanging out with the lovely Renee Beach, venturing on a rollercoaster of PR through our networker extraordinaire Karine and LOTS of meaty dinners and you’ll see why I’m a happy bunny… Of course the cherry on the Toronto pie was our gig at El Mocambo which not only hit the sweet spot of the audience (and mine), but saw a whole host of industry people show up as well. Fast forward a few hours and we’re ROCKING away to the impossibly tight and ridiculously named Bastard, finally a chance to check out what NXNE has to offer besides us ‘kooky electro poppers’ (seriously, check that band out). So, will we be back? Ehhhhhhm, Hell Yeah! Even if only for Karl to satisfy his Poutine craving.
Oof! I’ve just landed back on British soil and I never got to eat my Canadian Poutine, mustn’t grumble though as I did get whisked away in the Canadian high life with the darling Renee Beach (stylist to the rock Gods) and enjoy a pumping set with Kovak at the legendary El Mocambos (Elmo’s to the locals) and a live TV interview on one of Toronto’s largest networks. At one point very late in the evening I seem to remember fitting into one of Madonna’s actual dresses used for the Vogue shoot – a little breezy Madge, even with the heat of Toronto.
"Today we're mixing with rock royalty. Well, the partners of rock royalty as Annelies is being taken out shopping and styled by the beautiful Renee Beach, best known for being the ex-partner of The Cult's singer, Ian Astbury, and the star of their video Edie (Ciao Baby) here -
Hello – I’m the cowbell… 
Hey there I'm Annelies, aka Mummalies: the singer, poser and hardcore talker of the band. Apart from singing I like anything that ends in ‘urfing or ‘oarding like kitesurfing, snowboarding – you get the picture. You could say I’m a girly tomboy adrenaline woman singer chick, which rolls off the tongue rather nicely I think. I also love sparkles and bright colours and occasionally I go on naturist holidays. I actually think everyone should either be naked or in sparkly/colourful clothes. One of the two. It's KOVAK law and Dazza knows this as he regularly gets naked too although he didn’t admit this in his profile. I'm always either singing or talking. It's a constant thing. The rest of the band love it. Big sweaty man love. And to you, hopefully a fan, I give you soft cuddly woman love, because I love fans. That’s it.
I’m Karl the guitar player in Kovak and runner on the spot.
Hello Dazza the Drummer here!
It's a long hard road trying to break a pop act these days. The competition is stiff with the likes of Lady Gaga, Britney, Kylie and the numerous "manufactured" boy and girl bands dominating the airwaves, as they and their like have done for the past twenty odd years. Add to that equation the quick fix solutions that get churned from the X Factor / BGT type shows ad nauseum and it feels like a seriously uphill battle.
Are you, or do you know, a potential PR, Search and/or Social Media superstar that has an appetite for shaping our rapidly changing industry?
To sell your story or not – what is the right thing to do?
