A little wander around Columbia Road.

So I had a little wander around Columbia Road, East London, this morning and took a couple of snaps.

Maldives 2012 [Photos]

As I mentioned, a few weeks ago I took a cheeky vacation to the Maldives. My brother made this video of the trip, and I took a few photos. Have a lookie.

Maldives 2012 [Video]

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to go to the Maldives with my family. A stupidly beautiful part of the world, tiny islands filled with white sand and surrounded by crystal blue waters. My younger brother Gavin go his GoPro and put together a video, mainly filled with the stunning array of fish hidden in the coral around the islands.

Maldives 2012 from Gavin Watson on Vimeo.

Croyde 2012

Last weekend I went to a very wet and a very windy Croyde in Devon to go surfing. Was a lovely time with almost all of my family. Here's a few of my favourite snaps from the weekend:

Menorca 2012 Snaps.

Occasionally on my blog I like to get a little self-indulgence. Well, this is one of those occasions as I present a few of my favourite photos I took whilst on a much needed holiday in Menorca (on my shiny new camera).

(Technically a screen shot but I like it nonetheless)

Life's Work.

This is how you should feel about your job:

Ine's Birthday Night.

Last Saturday I went out with some friends for my housemate's birthday. This is how we got on:

Bath In Snow

When I was younger I used to make videos all the time and I've really gotten out of shape in the respect. I used to make them of anything, football, playing in the forest, trampoline tricks. I would already have it all planned out in my head as I filmed and spend pain-staking hours inches from a computer screen editing, as I slowly but surely ended up hating whatever song I chose to put behind the visuals. So I'm trying to make a bit of an effort to get back into it, whilst I save up for a camera that is actually decent to film with.



So when I was living in the beautiful and iconic city that is Bath, it began to snow, a lot. How perfect. So I grabbed my camera and rather photogenic girlfriend and headed to the streets, see the results above. Basic but it's good to get back to it.

We Are Your Friends Edit.

As a young boy I used to love filming and putting together little videos and it's something that I've not done for a long time. Too long. So as I made my way back down to my university home, Bournemouth, I decided to change this. Sure it's no Scorsese epic but I think it captures the fun times we had that night, more so than yet another Facebook album does. Enjoy.

Gig Review: Bon Iver - Hammersmith Apollo.

For years now I've been listening to Bon Iver. And by listening to, I mean having For Emma, Forever Ago on repeat for a few years, then the four track Blood Bank EP on repeat, and then this year their second album, Bon Iver, surfaced and is looking like a strong contender for my album of the year. I've watched his performance of Skinny Love on Jools Holland, countless times, felt every ounce of sadness in his Bonnie Raitt cover of I Can't Make You Love Me. And then there's his work with the one and only Kanye West just to top it all off.

It's fair to say I'm a big fan.

It's almost impossible to speak of Bon Iver, aka Justin Vernon, without mentioning his retreat into a cabin in the woods after his heartbreak from his girlfriend. This is where he wrote his incredible debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago. His odd, highly pitched, yet majestic voice and simple guitar riffs culminated into a deeply sad, heartfelt record that captures the hearts of so many. It is a beautiful album, quite simply, one of the best I have ever heard.

And then came his second album, Bon Iver. Along with millions of others, I prayed that it was as incredible as I hoped it to be. And it was. Now with a 9 piece band, Bon Iver was a whole new beast. With a variety of instruments, some backing singers and some sound manipulations, Bon Iver managed to produce an album of sonic perfection. The tracks are simple and humble when they need to be, and then suddenly epic and euphoric. Every drop is perfectly timed, every lyric perfectly sung and every instrument perfectly placed. Perfect.

So after years of what seems like adoration and hero worship as I write this post, I finally got to see the man live in concert. Needless to say I was excited. Needless to say it was perfect. Like his albums, the gig had a beautiful rythem to starting off, as the sound album does with Perth and Towers, dipping down into a solo Flume and Holocene and then up in Blood Bank.




As the sold out gig progressed, the crowd was transfixed as one, yet it felt oddly personal, largely due to the nature of his songs and the emotions that he can still portray them with. It was almost like every song was going to do end the gig, but there was another and another. After one of the loudest requests for an encored I have heard, he and his band returned to finish the night on two of his sadness, yet greatest songs, For Emma and then of course Skinny Love. Despite the sadness of the songs, you can't help but join in and feel the release of the sounds on behalf of Justin. Having listened to and watched many Skinny Love videos, his live version was unique and a welcome change as he sat down with his guitar and was surrounded by his band as they clapped, stomped and sang along. It was a (sorry for repetition of) perfect end to a perfect night.

A Sunday In East London.

East London is getting a bad reputation these days, and it's safe to say that shows like the upcoming The Only Way Is Dalson, is going to help. There's no doubt that the Shoreditch/Brick Lane area is full of hipsters and just general try hards, but equally, it is full of art and culture, and that is something that should definitely be embraced rather than shunned.

I've dipped in and out of East London, however last Sunday I had a bit more of an exploration, visiting Spitalfields market, Brick Lane market and the beautiful Columbia Road flower market where everything is 'laavley' or '4 for a fivvar'. As you squeeze and shove between a mixture of locals and tourists you bounce between countless stalls featuring vintage clothing, handmade jewellery, real fur coats, art and food from each corner of the world. You really get the feeling that each time you go there you're going to discover something new, whether it just be a new stall of t-shirts, a new musical talent or a spot of graffiti. Speaking of the latter, you can see below some examples that brightened up the streets, made people stop and stare and whip out their phones (guilty) to take a snap, now how can something that adds so much be deemed illegal?

Just a couple of hours later...

I hope to make my visits a bit more frequent and explorations a bit deeper in the near and distant future.

Pastures New.

It's been a bit longer than a while since I last got a moment to sit down at the my worn out Macbook to write some words and sentences on the humble blog. That is mainly down to the fact that it has been longer than a while since I had a chance to sit down and stop at all. Now I won't sit here and bore you with a minute by minute account of the past four weeks but I will (loosely) entertain you with some of the major plot developments, such as I got a pretty decent set of speakers of £5 from Gumtree. I joke.
Some of you will know fully aware that I have, for the past year and a bit, been one of the statistics concerning the numbers of graduates that don't get employed since finishing university. I did a good course, Advertising and Marketing. I went to a good university, Bournemouth. I got a good grade, 2.1 (just). But for me and thousands others, that really isn't enough, and a lack of working experience doesn't help much either. And that darned economic climate helps no man.

So after the best part of a year of applying for every job, somewhat related to the advertising industry, I finally got something. Well I got more than something, I got an incredible opportunity. I'm currently on the HomeGrown intern scheme at BBH. For those not in the know, BBH is one of the original, great, British advertising agencies, and has gone on to fully stamp that reputation on the rest of the world. To name but a few, their client list features Google, Audi, Lynx, ITV, British Airways. Impressive. Though it's just an internship, I'm looking to grab the opportunity and have already starting working on some cool projects. BBH is a brilliant agency, sure they've got a great show-reel and are headed by the great, Sir John Hegarty, but it is their entrepreneurial and tireless approach that I really love. Working in departments such as Labs and Zag, is really incredible as they look to diversify themselves away from the traditional agency approach. They still have the basics of fantastic creativity holding hands with great consumer insights but apply it to pushing themselves and the industry forward. Really inspiring.

So I know find myself situated in London, from the village to the big city, and I'm glad I'm finally here. Things can begin.


On a side note, I thought I would give you a bit of a heads-up on where I'm hoping the blog is heading. Now that I'm in London, I'm assuming that a plethora of interesting activites will be coming my way to write about. But seriously, I'm looking to accompany the usual updates and posts of music, advertising, film, fashion etc, with my life and the things that I get upto. I hope you look forward to this and come along with me.
Thanks for the support.

Glastonbury: The Review

It was a Wednesday afternoon when we started our walk across Britain's biggest festival. A festival that packs 177,000 people, 60 stages that provide the most diverse of artists culminating in the headliners U2, Coldplay and Beyonce. It was about to begin, Glastonbury 2011 was upon us.

Glastonbury is synonymous with mud, and this year was no different. Despite missing the morning downpour the wellies were instantly out and caked in mud. With backpacks packed full of multiple pairs of socks, clothes for every weather, sleeping bags, an air mat that never stays up and a tent, we began the walk worthy of Ranulph Fiennes. What made matters worse was that the remainder of our group couldn't have picked a spot further away from our car park. But after what felt like years, the trek was over and needless to say, many earned beverages were enjoyed.

Thursday was spent with further appreciation of the sheer enormity of the festival. Despite another mammoth trip back to the car for some vital alcohol, trips were made to some of many vintage shops and some incredible food stalls that are dotted all over the festival. Whether it be pies, Mexican, burgers, Chinese, freshly made lemonade or fruit smoothies, Glastonbury has it all and so much more. The taste buds are constantly satisfied. That night the giraffe Kigus were donned (you need one in your life) and the trip was made to the dance village. Despite the 'main acts' not starting until Friday there were tents rammed full of beats and hits for all to enjoy.

Whilst nursing heavy hangovers, it was finally time for some bands. And with bands, decisions have to be made. With the schedule being so good and varied and the site being so huge and still mud stricken, bands were always going to be missed. Some that took the hit for me were The Streets, Aloe Blacc, Wu Tang Clan, Janelle Monae, Yuck, City and Colour. Things are made even worse when you read reviews and watch coverage. However, I saw some of my favourite bands over the course of the weekend including Brother (now Viva Brother), Gaslight Anthem, The Vaccines, Biffy Clyro, Bombay Bicycle Club, Jimmy Eat World, Lykke Li and a few others. One of the many wonderful aspects of the festival is that you get to hear some of your favourite artists that rarely tour the UK, some you've seen many times and still love, and some you've never heard before. I won't review every band I saw as this will only cause fatigue to my fingers and your eyes. But I will mention a few words on some stand outs.

Bombay Bicycle Club - The shy and geeky, yet supremely talented boys put in a tight and passionate performance, letting the songs do the talking, whilst clearly enjoying themselves. Also some of their new songs sound good, REALLY good. Can't wait for the new album.

Biffy Clyro - Loud. Powerful. Energetic. Sweaty.

Jimmy Eat World - It was amazing to see a band that I've listened to for some many years for the first time. They played all the right stuff and it was incredible to hear Sweetness and The Middle live.

Viva Brother - Put in a solid, pumped up performance as ever, showing that they are only on the up. And it would not be a Brother show without some controversy, saying they were "coming down quicker than the twin towers" and continuing their Oasis spat by introducing a song as 'Wonderwall'.

The highlight of the festival was undoubtedly the Saturday night, largely due to Coldplay and our eagerness to dance.

Despite no one really being a 'massive' Coldplay, I think that every single one of knew every Coldplay, as does the majority of the British public, you just do. However no one expected the performance we got. While Friday headliners U2 tried to be epic and controversial and Beyonce was really good when it was a Crazy In Life or Single Ladies yet struggled to keep attention in the Halo type songs, Coldplay got it perfect. They piled absolutely everything into their set. The setlist was perfect, new songs were mixed with undeniably momentous songs such as Shiver and Yellow. The stage show was equally perfect with the perfect mix of lasers, smokes and confetti. Despite mucking up one song and restarting it, the energy and emotions throughout the set were through the roof, each and everyone of us absolutely loved it. Please see for yourself:



The second half of the night was wholly different. After the immense high of Coldplay we managed to settle down into a circus tent and was some incredible Knight/Robot dancing. After the act, the interval entertainers were the Jaipur Kawa Indian brass band. I'm pretty sure they were meant to just play a couple of songs for about 5/10 minutes, but we had different intentions for them. Again, suited up as giraffes we stormed the stage and created a dancing revolution. The band initially appeared pretty shocked, but were soon loving it and the tent quickly became filled by about a hundred people dancing and congo-lining their hearts out to Indian brass music. We insisted for many an encore and refused anything else, ruining the night's schedule, but it was worth it. A surreal experience. One friend simply said the next day "shit like last night is hard to forget".

After more hangovers were nursed, more of the festival was explored. From peace gardens to a stone circle to reflexology tents, Glastonbury truly keeps its hippie routes, ignoring the utter madness that is ensuing elsewhere.

After Beyonce's somewhat up and down performance, the final night was crowned with a visit to the Arcadia show and the Shangri-La areas. With it's lasers, flamethrowers and acrobats, Arcadia really is a site to behold. (This video is from last year, but you get the idea.)



Shangri-La and Block 9 hold no bars. Constructed a post-apocalyptic world, it really is something else. From half a block of flats with a underground train embedded in the side to an abandoned hotel which has taken the shape of some sort of faux brothel/strip club to horrific medical experiments being carried out to a mermaid cabaret bar named 'Fish + Tits', it really is something else. Surreal is one hell of an understatement.

So there we have it, Glastonbury has come to an end and I can't wait to go back in 2013. I hope you've enjoyed my words and pictures and the videos (not mine) on the post, I would love to hear your experiences of the weekend if you were there. It truly is an incredible festival, the diversity of acts and activities is unbelievable, the size is immense, the atmosphere is engaging. If you went, I hope you loved it as much as me, if you didn't make sure you're there in 2013.