When I moved to Gdansk my only option was to share a flat with people I didn’t know. Although I was a bit worried at first, after a rather neutral three month experience I found a flat with absolutely lovely flatmates whom I’ve been living with for the last year. However, the great atmosphere we … Continue reading The fourth flatmate
1981 was the first year in which Jethro Tull didn’t release an album since the band’s creation in 1968. 1980’s A had given Tull’s music a change of direction which was confirmed by 1982’s The Broadsword and the Beast (or, to give it a shorter name, Broadsword). Unfortunately, pianist and violinist Eddie Jobson had made it clear that his playing … Continue reading Jethro Tull (XII): 80s hard folk rock with a Tolkien cover
It’s been half a year since I last went on a proper trip. Since then, I have only been home for Christmas and I have done a couple of quick weekend getaways to Polish towns I already knew. I feel it’s been too long without writing about trips, so inspired by an article I read … Continue reading Of how Poland ended up being my second home
I have said plenty of times that I generally don't care much about lyrics and I normally focus on the melody and instrumentation. Well, for the first time in my life I have found an album which has captivated me mostly because of the lyrics. Sure, the melodies are nice and Joan Manuel Serrat has … Continue reading Ode to the Mediterranean Sea
Written on the 10th of December, 2016 Artists often have tormented lives. Some die young, some are unexplainable unsuccessful, some have alcohol and drug abuse problems. Perhaps you’ve seen the movie Searching for Sugarman, which shows the life of Sixto Rodríguez, a very good songwriter who didn’t have much luck back in the seventies. Quite sad, … Continue reading The sad life of Jackson C. Frank
Written on the 26th of July, 2016 A few months ago I wrote a post about a Basque songwriter called Ruper Ordorika and one of his songs, Martin Larralde. This time I’ll write about Mikel Laboa, another Basque songriter who was, I believe, a big inspiration for Ruper Ordorika and definitely one of the biggest Basque … Continue reading Mikel Laboa: elegance and fragility
Written on the 17th of June, 2016 Going from the 70s to the 80s was not just a change of numbers for Jethro Tull. Firstly, John Glascock died in 1979 and soon after that Barrie Barlow, who was perhaps hisclosest friends, quit the band. Also, Ian Anderson decided he wanted to work on a solo album, … Continue reading Jethro Tull (XI): changes
Written on the 19th of March, 2016 Dear people who have enough time to read my pointless rants: I am troubled. I am troubled by all the hate I see towards John Barleycorn. Why does everyone want to kill him? So far I’ve heard bands such as Jethro Tull, Fairport Convention and Traffic sing it, and … Continue reading Everybody hates John Barleycorn
Written on the 25th of February 2016 Four and a half years ago, in September 2011, I started my year abroad as an Erasmus student. It was an amazing year; I met so many great people and travelled to so many different places. However, the place I called home for nine months was not exactly … Continue reading Poland’s got the blues
Written on the 29th of January, 2016 Today I want to tell you about a guy who lived about two hundred years ago. This is going to seem totally off-topic at first, but I promise this is still a music blog. There's a song in the end, in case you want to skip the boring … Continue reading Martin Larralde
