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Dec 10 2020

TO WHERE I AM NOW

Just a quick note to say that if you contributed to the Indiegogo campaign for the new MOAT album Poison Stream and haven’t figured out, haven’t seen or didn’t get your digital download yet, then contact Olivia here: olivia@martywillson-piper.com and she will help you out.

I presume that everybody is aware of the monoliths that have been appearing in different locations in the world. There was one that appeared in San Juan County, Utah, 9 feet tall but soon after it was spotted it mysteriously disappeared leaving a triangular divot in the Earth. Next was Atascadero, a town in San Luis Obispo County, California, where at this point, it is still there but differs slightly in placement and size. Then there is the monolith in Batca Doamnei Hill near Piatra Neamt in Romania which is allegedly the same as the Utah monolith, although differing reports state the size as 13 feet, an example of misinformation that has become so familiar – it’s the same size except for the 4 feet difference? So is the different California monolith a copycat placed there by artistic types? Or are they all artistic statements? Is it the beginning of alien communication and/or reconnaissance missions or is it the mysterious and always invisible Banksy branching out? The alien’s clever trick of making the monoliths both the same and different sizes at the same time is one thing, planting them and moving them unseen another, but how did they get my image from the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra onto the Utah monolith? What are they trying to say? Do they like Rickenbackers? (Nice one, Guy.)

In our bedroom, there are walls that are hundreds of years old. You awake to the sound of the rain outside beyond the shutters that block out the light, but not the sound of the weather. Somewhere inside those ancient blocks, small channels of water wind their way through the construct onto the stone floor, the bedside table, and my book. There’s something real about it, something natural exposing nature’s ability to eventually thwart human endeavour. When we left today, clambering down four flights of painted brown stairs, the hallway between the bottom step and the entrance showed a greater problem where the water has destroyed the ceiling, ripped the plaster and paint off the wall and left large brown stains, indelible streaks that beg for renovation. It’s the story of the city and there is so much renovation going on here. I feel glad to see it like this, the way New York and Berlin used to be in neighbourhoods that have now become gentrified and inhabited by millionaires.

Outside the city was shrouded in an ominous mist, we decided to walk to another part of town, umbrellas at the ready, in search of Quorn. Is it worth traipsing across town in the rain for frozen processed veggie food? Yes, of course, it is, otherwise, I’d starve! Ok, I’m exaggerating but that Quorn cottage pie is something else. The other reason to walk across town on a rainy, misty afternoon with the clouds low is to catch the town in a unique atmosphere, this is Portugal, everyone in the world thinks, Southern Europe – sunny all the time. Then there’s the exploring of the city, going off in different directions, seeing where these winding roads lead. I’ll be posting various pictures over the coming weeks to Christmas as we discover ancient streets, beautiful decay, and the allure of a strange city, one which we hope to know better soon.

We stumbled across a very cool Indie record store, Music and Riots, in a street of cool alternative shops, a health food store, a gallery and others. The record store hasn’t been open long but we met Fausto, the owner, he also has a magazine and he’s trying hard to get the Indie thang happening in Portugal. I noticed a lot of records in there that I have – Weyes Blood, Phoebe Bridgers, Flying Lotus, FKA Twigs, Fever Ray, you get the picture. Also in the street was a clothes shop that had a nice lady, Madelene, who owned the shop, I found the ‘husband chair’ and Olivia looked at some clothes and some jewellery, she bought a horned beast to hang around her neck. She told us we were the only customers all day and like the record store, these kinds of shops are struggling, it’s winter, it’s raining, it’s misty, it’s masks, virus, and fear, there’s not a lot of people browsing.

We took the subway back to the Airbnb, our first time using public transport. It was getting late, it was raining, we thought we should take the easy route home but it was good to get a look at the subway and start to get to know the lines. It had been a longish day, we’ve had a meeting with Mario, the man who was helping us open a bank account before we left. We’d found the recycling and emptied bags of plastic bottles and packaging. We’d climbed endless steps, steep inclines and wheeled our umbrellas fighting the constant drizzle. We were ready for Californians In Space, but first I had French, Olivia had emails and I still haven’t caught up with my emails and my phone fraud is still not solved after two weeks. Life!

Music today was…haha, The Beatles – Rubber Soul (1965) and interestingly, now I’m out of the archive and can’t actually play records, my Spotify account could be playing countless wonders that I don’t even own, that’s the thing today, you don’t even need a record collection to play your favourite music. But somehow I’ve been sticking with The Beatles, more because it takes attention and concentration to explore new music and old music you love and know well is a comfort and a familiarity when you are balanced between the old and the new world of your life.

Song Of The Daze

Written by Marty Willson-Piper · Categorized: Blog

Missing

This is my stolen 1965 Rickenbacker 12-string, serial number EB157. If there's any chance of this guitar coming back to me before I go to meet my maker, then that would be wonderful. Please contact me if you have any information.

11209512_1669022976719710_7288437867089763325_n

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Rockin' the MOAT t-shirt next to the real deal! #m Rockin' the MOAT t-shirt next to the real deal! #moatband #poisonstream 🤘🏰

T-Shirt Design by Reid Wilson
Photo by @oliviaelektra 

#schoolkidsrecords #nikoröhlcke #wellscathedral
Peter Walsh and I getting down at the Heron Tower Peter Walsh and I getting down at the Heron Tower disco 🕺🏻 #heyday
Soundchecking at Birmingham Symphony Hall, 10th Fe Soundchecking at Birmingham Symphony Hall, 10th February, 2001. All About Eve supporting Fairport Convention.

📷 by @derektimbrell
Thanks to The Wernickis for a little glimpse into Thanks to The Wernickis for a little glimpse into their new New Mexico listening space 🌵 #nightjar #schoolkidsrecords
Redeyed lad of the lowlands 🎵 📷 @oliviaelek Redeyed lad of the lowlands 🎵

📷 @oliviaelektra 

#danelectro #danelectrobass #redeyerecords #pleasantrylane #pleasantrylanestudio
You usually don’t spend the day in the studio an You usually don’t spend the day in the studio and the night at a gig but if you put the studio next to the gig then there’s a greater chance. So @salimnourallah did just that, he put the gig and the studio next to each other and made it possible for me to spend the day recording and the evening playing live 🎵

📷 @drewliophoto 

#galacticheadquarters #happinessarecordlabel #pleasantrylanestudio #salimnourallah #oliviawillsonpiper
TO WHERE I AM NOW A visit in the studio today fro TO WHERE I AM NOW

A visit in the studio today from old mate Mark Burgess from The Chameleons who has been hanging in Texas recently. I was thinking about the two of us growing up in the northwest of England and all these years later finding ourselves in such an unlikely spot together. We fixed a few issues in the universe and I carried on recording some guitars until Mark had to leave. Mark had played at the Galactic Headquarters next to the studio this year as Olivia and I had four years ago and this reminded me to remind myself to remind everyone to remind their friends that we will be playing there with Salim on Saturday, New Year’s Eve, for the ultimate in intimate performance. You can get tickets here (follow link below).

CONTINUE READING: https://martywillson-piper.com/2022/12/to-where-i-am-now-1045

KEEP IN TOUCH: https://linktr.ee/mwillsonpiper

📷 @salimnourallah 

#markburgess #thechameleons #chameleonsvox #pleasantrylanestudio #happinessarecordlabel #martywillsonpiper #oliviawillsonpiper #moatband
📷 @argirgirl 📷 @argirgirl
TO WHERE I AM NOW Sadness manifested in a buildin TO WHERE I AM NOW

Sadness manifested in a building, today we went to visit Paisley Park. Prince built Paisley Park in Chanhassen, about twenty minutes southwest of Minneapolis. It opened in 1987 and he recorded his later albums there. Apart from Prince, REM also recorded and mixed Out Of Time there, recording Kate Pearson’s vocal on Shiny Happy People vocal. Madonna had Prince play guitar on three songs from Like A Prayer and the two co-wrote Love Song, finishing it remotely due to Madonna not being able to stand the cold weather and the rather desolate location of the studio. Of course, there are things around but it’s not in the city and it’s not in the countryside, it’s in a suburb, no distractions, just what Prince wanted.

CONTINUE READING: https://martywillson-piper.com/2022/12/to-where-i-am-now-1032

KEEP IN TOUCH: https://linktr.ee/mwillsonpiper

📷 @argirgirl 

#paisleypark #prince
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"These are awesome sessions that I highly recommend for guitar players of all levels. Very informative, frank discussions on everything related to guitar and music in general. Definitely a must for anyone pursuing songwriting."
(Stephen G., VA, USA)

"Marty knows how to bypass scales and get to the heart of feel and timing. His musical knowledge spans multiple cultures and genres. Perhaps most importantly, Marty is a cool dude. I highly recommend his guitar guidance." (Jed B., MN, USA)

"Ok, so you’re sitting in your home and Marty is across the world but is actually right here teaching you how to play guitar and write songs. He is a delight to talk to and he is your teacher, meaning he wants to see you get something out of his lessons. You know he’s paying attention and wants to steer you in the right direction. I am so grateful and humbled that he offers his time in this manner. This is an amazing opportunity for anyone who admires anything from his enormous body of work. How often do you get to learn from somebody that inspired you in the first place? Amazing." (Ann S., CA, USA)

Missing

This is my stolen 1965 Rickenbacker 12-string, serial number EB157. If there’s any chance of this guitar coming back to me before I go to meet my maker, then that would be wonderful. Please contact me if you have any information.

11209512_1669022976719710_7288437867089763325_n

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