Undiscovered Soul

You'll come to find out why I find 'Undiscovered Soul' a very apt title for this blog post. Anyone who listens to music of any genre will no doubt have heard of the long haired rock 'n' roll machine that is Bon Jovi. This band have been releasing multi platinum albums for 30 years now and have become well known for hits such as 'Livin on A Prayer', 'It's My Life' and 'You Give Love A Bad Name'. Despite having millions of fans across the globe there are also millions of people who either dislike or just don't take interest in this great band. But love them or hate them, what can't be denied is that each band member is a world class rock musician in his own right and so I arrive at the topic of this blog post: Lead guitarist Richie Sambora...

Bon Jovi fans will already be aware that Richie recently left the band, whether it be on a permanent basis or otherwise. This is sad news for fans such as I but I won't be dwelling on that here. Instead I hope to raise awareness of Sambora as a solo artist and musician in his own right. Many Bon Jovi fans buy a ticket  to a show based on Richie's presence in the band alone so it is no surprise that he is capable of releasing some great music of his own.

First of all, don't go thinking that his music is just a re-hash of Bon Jovi with a different vocalist. It's far more soulful and differs in style depending on which of the three albums you listen too but each one has an Americana feel to it. Richie is a superb guitarist and upon listening to his records you maybe surprised to find he has an unbelievably good and powerful voice too (better than Jon Bon Jovi's in my opinion).

The Stranger in this town album was released during a 17 month Bon Jovi hiatus in 1991. It didn't top the charts and likely flew under the radar of most non- Bon Jovi fans. It may not have contained the ingredients which make a top ten album but the infusion of blues rock, soul and americana make for an incredible mix of both rock anthems and ballads alike. This album has its own atmosphere and it could not have been titled any better. You can really hear these songs echoing through the deserted, midnight streets of some small town out in the midwestern countryside. Maybe this is just the romantic in me but I can just picture Richie sat on his guitar case by the side of some dusty road on the outskirts of town, playing his songs for the moon and the stars. The album opener 'Rest In Peace' is arguably the weakest song on the album but by no means is it a skipper. A murky yet atmospheric number which really sets the tone for the album where Richie exhibits some of the licks and guitar work he has become famous for. The high points of the album are the title track which really sets the scene for the album, 'Ballad of Youth' displays some very intricate guitar playing whilst being one of the more up-tempo, anthemic numbers on the record with Richie singing about the struggles of growing up and living for the moment. 'Father Time' is the power ballad on the record and also my personal favourite about love lost and hearts broken with a powerful chorus, Richie really showing off his vocal range. Other numbers of note are 'Rosie' which as a track written for Bon Jovi's New Jersey album and 'Church of Desire'. Rosie is the most Jovi-like song on the record, very catchy with the typical riffs that you might expect from a Bon Jovi song. I could talk about each song in more detail but I won't. All you need to realise is that there are no fillers on this album and if you like blues, soul and rock'n'roll it is well worth listening to over and over again.

For his second album Richie left behind the echoing power ballads from 'Stranger in this Town' and opted for a cleaner sounding heartland rock album. Reflecting back on his previous album Richie said he was coming down from a really soulful place' and not necessarily writing for anyone else but himself. The songs of heartache and struggle are in the past and there is a real positive, feel good factor to this album with a cleaner sound to boot. Even the few songs that deal with adversity seem to have an 'everything will be ok' feel to them. These songs seem effortless and the majority of songs on this album make for a great listen as you speed down the highway with the top down. Kicking off with a strong biographical number called 'Made in America', an uplifting tune to set the scene, it becomes clear straight away that this album has been written to be noticed. Heartfelt love songs such as 'In it for Love' provide welcome breaks from rockier numbers such as 'Who I Am' and 'If God Was A Woman' and you really get the impression that Richie means what he's singing, as if the emotions in those songs are held dear to his heart. That comes through with his delivery on the vocals. Richie has retained his ability to create an atmosphere with within select songs on this record. 'Harlem Rain' really captures a loneliness on the 'streets of pain' which is reminiscent of the setting for Stranger in This Town and the title track 'Undiscoverd Soul' is an epic track to finish the album, its characters dealing with adversity as they try to make it in 'the great unknown'. This an album full of typical Richie Sambora riffs, it retains the soulful nature of his vocals and contains no throw away tracks. Of the three he has released, this is the album most likely to appeal to a wider audience.

In 2012 Richie released his third album 'Aftermath of the Lowdown'. Its ok... it doesn't hit the heights of his first two and so I'd only buy it after you've enjoyed the earlier records. I feel that this album takes several elements of the previous two whilst exploring some different themes and throwing in a few curve balls for good measure. This album does have a few throw away tracks, which I'm not sure I understand too well. 'Burn That Candle Down' and  'Sugar Daddy' come to mind here and in some places the lyrics just don't stand up against Richie's earlier work. Having said that, you get this with a lot of artists so if you don't mind skipping a few tracks there are still some gems to be discovered. The lead single' Every Road Leads Home To You' and another track 'I'll Always Walk Beside You 'are both very good songs. 'Seven Years Gone' is very reminiscent of the vibe i felt on Undiscovered Soul so its nice to be reminded that Richie is still capable of producing credible songs. Perhaps my favourite song on this album is the closer 'Backseat Driver'. For those who have had somebody walk all over you this is your rebellion song and even for those who haven't this is a real fun rocker which will have you singing into your steering wheel. Whilst Richie may have lost his way slightly with this album it is still well worth a listen. For me it didn't retain a similar theme throughout so I suppose I see it as a bit of a mongrel, his lyrics let him down at times and on the odd song he tries too hard to squeeze in long solo parts which perhaps weren't necessary.

 In terms of musicianship and vocals Richie's still got it. Bon Jovi's recent albums haven't really done it for me like they used to so I'm starting to think that maybe this break up could allow Richie to spread his wings a little more and develop as more of a solo artist. I'm of course sad to see such a prominent figure of one of my favourite bands depart but I also know I'm powerless to change it so I will appreciate the great music I've experienced over the years and just hope for the best for all the Bon Jovi guys in the future.

The way I see it, Richie Sambora IS an undiscovered soul. Bon Jovi aside, he has had the tallent (over the past couple of decades) to stand up as a credible solo artist in his own right but I would guess that most of his own album and ticket sales will have been made to those within the Bon Jovi fan circle. If only more people could hear some of this music then many would feel much better for it...

Here I Go Again

So it’s been a while since I wrote on this blog...  about 14 months actually and I can’t believe how quickly time has gone. I guess I got a little bit bored of it somewhere along the way and put it down for a while.  I’m kind of regretting that now as I feel that there are a lot of musical topics which I would have written about during this hiatus I’ve taken: I went to perhaps the best gig of my life when I saw Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band play at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium, there have been 2 Gaslight Anthem tours, the 2012 Revival Tour and all of my favourite bands have released new material in that meantime, I’ve also discovered a whole horde of new artists which I hope to tell you about in future posts.

A little closer to home I continue to work on and record my own music. I’ve left the days of posting to You Tube behind now. I don’t look back on those videos fondly anymore.  I’ve progressed as a guitar player and a singer a lot since then and they far from represent my best work so I only really direct listeners towards my Soundcloud page these days. Over the past year I’ve written many songs but two in particular ‘Floyd’ and ‘Living with Ghosts’ represent some of my best work to date so I hope you manage to find them at some point. Here is a link to my artist page on facebook (another product of the last year).

My music page

Anyway, getting to the point, I’m hoping to pick up where I left off again now but with a bit more focus and structure to my posts. The purpose of this blog all along has been to promote music which is perhaps lesser known to a lot of people, share my opinions on certain topics and also to promote my own music. I found I was starting to mix in aspects of my personal life, sporting events, anecdotes unrelated to music and other shit that really took some credibility away from the reason I started the blog in the first place. All that extra stuff is getting thrown out now! This blog will now focus only on things related to music be it my own or someone else’s. The posts will be more focused. I intend to dedicate a lot of the posts specifically to one band/ singer/ songwriter and simply write about them in order to help promote them, I may dedicate the odd post to a particular tour that I’ve been on or to my own work but the overall aim is to inform and educate just as its always been. I hope to regain the readers that I may have lost during my hiatus and if I’m lucky pick up some new readers along the way. This can be a good occasional hobby if you get into it.

Different attitude to blogging but still the same blue jeans and white T shirts. Heres to new beginnings...

The Midnight Sessions

The Midnight Sessions is a small project I've been working on slowly over the last couple of months. My usual approach to recording my voice is that I'll sing out, to my voice's full capacity I guess. Its louder but then again it suits the style I usually play in. Usually when recording demos of my songs or covers of other peoples songs I will do it all on separate tracks. Recording the rhythm guitar part first then recording the lead guitar over it and then the vocals over that etc.

These sessions take a much more simplistic and effortless approach to recording. It came from one night where I couldn't sleep. It was late and I just began strumming gently with my fingers and singing quietly so as not to disturb my parents who had guests round to the house. I guess I just liked singing these songs much quieter than I would usually belt them out so after playing a couple I just hit record and did about 3 or 4. Over the next month I just did couple more in the same style here and there and put them to a cd.

These recordings were done in one take. The sound is intended to be very raw, unrehearsed, meaningful put you to sleep kind of music. All the songs are covers from varying artists such as Ryan Adams, the Gaslight Anthem, Augustana and a few others so I'm just putting this cover of Gaslight Anthem's 'American Slang' out as a sampler for you to listen and I hope you like it. This isn't how I'd play it live, remember its for quiet time. Anyone who wants the full CD can have one just message me. Thanks for taking a look.

Alex Magrath - American Slang Cover (Click here)

Best Songs of 2011

Following on from last weeks list of Best Albums released this year, the next installment is my twenty best songs of 2011. There is a twist though.....
The songs don't necessarilly have to have been released in 2011, this list is based on when I first heard the song. If I heard it this year for the first time or if its at the top of my most played list on i tunes then it is eligible. You get me? To make it more interesting and less repetitive I'm only allowing myself one song per artist. Here we go:

1. Against Me! - Because of The Shame
2. Chuck Ragan - Meet You In The Middle
3. Olin and The Moon - Say Goodbye
4. The Horrible Crowes - Ladykiller
5. Chamberlain - Raise It High
6. Ryan Adams - Lucky Now
7. Jack Savoretti - Once Upon A Street
8. Two Cow Garage - Jackson, Don't You Worry
9. Augustana - Shot In The Dark
10.  Dave Hause - Meet Me At The Lanes
11. 3 Doors Down - Every Time You Go
12. Lucero - What Are You Willing To Lose
13. The Wallflowers - Three Marlenas
14. R.E.M. - Uberlin
15. Dan Andriano - This Light
16. Richard Thompson - 1952 Vincent Black Lightning
17. Brian Fallon - Goodnight Irene
18. The Avett Brothers - I and Love and You
19. Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
20. Nashville Skyline - Carry You Home

The last one won a toss up against Wakey! Wakey! - Dance So Good, can't have them all...

I hope you all take time look up some of these songs, create this same playlist on spotify, re-jig the order, whatever you want  but its full of good songs!

I should really charge for providing this useful and informative service so make the most of it while its still free!

Best albums of 2011!

This week you get my favourite albums released this year and if you have some time, definitely look up some of thesealbums and the songs recommended:

1. The Horrible Crowes - Elsie

Superb lyricism and some fanatastic melodies make for a very sedate, tranquil album about heartbreak, focusing particularly on two of snger Brian Fallon's ex girlfriends and finally on his wife in 'I Believe Jesus Brought Us Together'. Brian shows what fantastic range he has as he ranges from whispers right up to the wails of 'Mary Ann' a more up tempo agressive number. Besides 'Mary Ann' the other 11 songs are very easy listening perfect for times of relaxation and reflection. Highlight songs: 'Behold The Hurricane', 'Ladykiller' and 'Blood Loss'

2. Chuck Ragan - Covering Ground

A typical Chuck Ragan folk album, based around the acoustic guitar with the superb musicianship of Jon Gaunt (fiddle) andn Joe Ginsberg (upright bass). It particularly focuses on life on the road, the camaraderie of bandmates and the travelling life of a singer songwriter and is in my opinion his best solo album to date. I think theres a real good feel about the album, the kind of songs to keep you warm on these cold winter nights. Highlight Songs: 'Meet You In The Middle', 'Nothing Left To prove' and 'Wish On The Moon'

3. Against Me! - White Crosses/ Black Crosses

White Crosses was released in 2010 but still counts as it was re-released this year with its acoustic accompaniment 'Black Crosses'. I was new to Against Me until this year as I slowly discover more and more of these lesser known punk bands. Singer Tom Gabel mixes upbeat punk rock with his unique and direct lyrics which have had me singing at my steering wheel for months now. While many old school Against Me! fans beleive the band have sold out, I think its their best work. Black crosses is essentially the same album but the songs are either acoustic versions or demos. Highlight Songs: 'Because of The Shame', 'White Crosses' and 'Bitter Divisions'

4. Augustana - Augustana (eponymously titled)

This is Augustana's fourth album and whilst not perhaps hitting the critical heights of previous albums I think its a solid album that has dominated my playlists this year. I think Dan Layus' song writing has definitely improved with each album they have released. The songs are mostly love songs but that isn't to say that they are all slow numbers. Very easy album  to listen to, very melodic and Dan Layus has a great voice, its just a shame that the band have had difficulties with their lineup. I sincerely hope there is a future for this band... Highlight Songs: 'Shot in The Dark', ' Steal Your Heart' and 'Wrong Side of Love'.

5. Dave Hause - Resolutions

New to the music of Dave Hause and The Loved Ones this year I decided to check him out before the Revival Tour and found myself enjoying what he was writing about. I found they were songs about the realities of life, road accidents, friends going through hard times, how we drift from all of our old friends and re-unite to reminisce. Its good music about real stuff, not the heavier punk rock that The Loved Ones produce. Great to chill out to. Highlight Songs: 'Meet Me at The lanes', 'C'mon Kid' and 'Pray for Tuscon'/

6. 3 Doors Down - Time of My Life

A return to form for 3DD in my opinion. Their previous self titled effort didn't really hit the mark for me except for three or four tracks. This album is lots better. A good rocky, upbeat album with some anthemic songs in it. Although this is irrelevant to the music I would say the front cover to this album is my favourite album artwork of the year too. Highlight songs: 'Everytime You Go', 'Believer' and 'When You're Young'

7. Olin and The Moon - Footsteps

I'm sorry to say that I only discovered this band through the TV Show 'One Tree Hill'but I'm glad I did. Singer David LaBrel croaks his way through 15 songs. As with most albums on this playlist its very easy listening stuff rangeing from very slow mournful songs to cheery upbeat acoustic rock. These guys still haven't been discovered by many, they don't even have a proper Wikipedia page as far as I can see but it goes to show that the underground scene hides lots of hidden treasures like these. Highlight Songs: 'Say Goodbye', 'Not In Love' and That Light'

8. Dan Andriano in The Emergency Room - Hurricane Season

To complete the Revival Tour quartet set, Dan Andriano was entirely new to me until September when I was impressed with his soulful voice. This is his first solo album and its very good. The songs are mostly love songs, talking about missing your significant other but the lyrics are well written and meaningful and again, this is another very easy to listen album. If you're not sure Ive sold it to you, check the following songs out perhaps before committing to the whole album: 'This Light', 'Hurricane Season' and 'Me and Denver'.

9. R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now

R.E.M.'s last few studio albums have been slammed in most articles I have read but I think they were still doing ok. No, they may not hit the heights of 'Automatic for the People' but there are still plenty of songs on this (their final studio album) to keep their fans entertained. Some are typically upbeat with Michael Stipe's, confusing lyrics and unusual song subjects and some are more heartfelt a good mix and well worth a buy! I was planning to write about their break up but never got around to it. To make my top ten can be tribute enough... Highlight Songs: 'Uberlin', 'It Happened Today' and 'Oh My Heart'.

10. Ryan Adams - Ashes and Fire

I had been warned about Ryan Adams haviing varying styles of music depending on which album you buy but I heard him play 'Lucky Now' acoustically and had to buy the album as I thought it was one of the best songs I'd heard this year. The rest of the album was what I expected, its a very slow and meaningful album for quiet times but there are some good songs worth listening: 'Lucky Now', 'Come Home' and 'Chains of Love'

There are many albums released this year that I have intended but not got around to listening to. Im sure this list would have been slightly different but here it is. I hope you take the time to look a few of these songs up on Spotify, i tunes, you tube etc.

Next week I'll be giving my top 20 songs that I have discovered in 2011... Stay tuned.

Revival Road: part 2

So Dave Hause has put me and a plus one on the guest list for the Nottingham show, four days after the Manchester show. In between the tour has been to Dublin, Glasgow and Newcastle so this is the 6th night of the tour. By now the guys would be really in the swing of things, used to each others songs, some good covers worked out, should make for an even better show than Manchester in theory. The only problem was, was Dave Hause going to remember and keep his promise? Tweeting him during the day to ask for confirmation was useless because which musicians reply to or even read the tweets of their fan followers?

The show wasn't sold out so we (me and my sister) set out anyway, thinking worst case scenario is we have to buy a ticket at the box office if we aren't on the list. Two and a half hours later we are parked directly next to the venue and hanging around out back trying to catch the band to get our albums and photos signed. We could hear Dave sound checking but other than that not much was going on. The box office was closed so we had no choice but to queue outside Rock City and hope for the best. The show was approaching and still no idea but we were a little alarmed at the group building a separate queue on the box office side. Prior knowledge maybe??? Anyway, 10 minutes before doors a personal message drops into my twitter inbox, its usually phishing scam so Im expecting this but NO, Dave Hause messages "Just putting you on the list now man, enjoy the show" Awesome, Dave Hause personal messaging me. We got in, we got on the barrier at the front standing right in front of Brian Fallon's mic stand and next to a fellow Dimestore Saint - Alexander.

I liked the venue. If you've never been this is what its like. A wide stage in the middle facing the entrance doors. The venue is much wider than it is deep with a bar at each end and a balcony at the back over the entrance doors directly facing the stage.

The guys started the gig promptly and went about the show with similar songs to the Manchester show just varying their sets by a couple of songs each. Not to say that it was repetitive though. They were clearly all having a great time up there. Half the enjoyment for me was seeing these guys that i look up to a lot just hanging out with their friends on stage and playing their songs in such great spirit and passion. The highlights this time for me were Long Ride home by Brian and Dave (Patti Griffin cover), Old White Lincoln by Brian, Crush by The Horrible Crowes and the finale 'Revival Road' by the whole band, a song that I had now become familiar with. An awesome song; more on that later in the song of the blog;)

The official setlist was supposed to contain a fourth Horrible Crowes song ' I Believe Jesus brought us Together' but was cut out because during 'Cherry Blossom' (The quietest most emotional song on the whole show) some ignorant people about 7 rows back were chatting and laughing loudly amongst themselves. Brian finished the song and then started discussing the next Gaslight Anthem album and had to stop saying something like (and Im paraphrasing) "You must be having a real fucking interesting conversation over there" he was quite angry and when the houselights were cast over them they high fived and  Brian said (again im paraphrasing(you get the idea))"Oh yeah high five thats really cool" "You know I'm not sure if all of these people here came here to see me but they sure as fuck didn't come to hear you" At this point the whole room cheered and clapped for what must have been a whole minute.  That seemed to shut them up anyway. By this time Brian was a bit annoyed so after carrying on with his story somebody shouted for him to play and he responded "Yeah, Im getting to that but heres what you need to do; find a few friends, write some songs, try and get somebody to listen and then maybe you can get up here and play what you want, Keep em coming I got a load more of these I could do this all day" or something to that effect. He'd called one fan earlier an idiot not one but three times for cheering BRUUUUUUUCCE! Long story short Brian didn't seem as happy during the show but once he'd finished dealing with the troublesome crowd he seemed to perk up for his Gaslight Anthem songs. Theres no way they could have performed 'I believe Jesus brought us together' over the voices so unfortunately it was dropped. A shame that a few had to ruin it for the rest.

It didn't totally ruin the show it just tainted it a little. A plus for my sister was that Dave kept commenting on her being the pretty girl in the front row distracting him which she loved when she realised he was talking about her. Similar to last time we went to meet the band after the show and they were much quicker at coming out to speak to the fans. Unfortunately the fans couldn't get close to Brian for 15 minutes because his hecklers had come out to either apologise or argue their point which seemed to aggravate Brian at first. His explanation for his outburst was that he misses his friends and family when he tours and its all going on in his mind all the time and these people pushed him over the edge. I felt sorry for him because they still continued arguing and I was this close to wringing some girls neck for shouting insults. He said his concern was that these people were spoiling the show for others who had paid and had right to enjoy the show without hinderance.

More people were after his attention so we didn't get to chat as the hecklers were hanging around annoyingly still trying to talk their way back into his good books or put their point across for the millionth time. I did get 2 of my photos with him signed and had a new one done too which was better. Got 2 more albums signed by Chuck Ragan and went over to say thanks to Dave for the guest list spots. We got photos taken more autographs and he held off other fans until he'd finished talking to us and making sure we got what we wanted from him. Real nice guy and next time he's over either solo or with The Loved Ones I'll definitely go watching. Maybe he'll even remember me and my sister?

I was a little disappointed I had'nt had chance to speak to Ian, he'd disappeared when we came to leave and his was the only photo that I hadn't had signed so we walked back into the quiet multistorey and over to the car and who should be paying at the meter. Ian and a friend of his from Johnny Cupcakes. He remembered me from the Manchester show and wrote me a message on the photo that he signed which was cool. They both invited me to a Johnny Cupcakes event but unfortunately I can't make it.

That drew a close to another great night. As we pulled out of the car park Brian looked up from the people he was talking to and gave us a quick wave and a nod. In the distraction I forgot to put my headlights on and turned the wrong way up a one way street. Luckily it was quiet...

Song of the blog this time is Revival Road as mentioned earlier. I just think this song sums up The Revival Tour. Its used as the last song to say goodbye to the fans before the Tour hits the road again. Its got all the makings of a great folk song and I think this song should close every Revival Tour show there is. Maybe it will go down in history and become one of the legendary folk songs that people still sing in 100 years time like the traditional folk songs. Its a nice idea. Heres the link. Enjoy the camaraderie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCjaJ1EMmoY

Fare thee well for now...

Revival Road part 1:

After an awesome night at The Revival Tour in Manchester I thought I'd blog about it. Not just for others to read about but partly so that I have written down what i remember so that I don't forget bits.

For those that don't know what the Revival Tour is heres a summary. Its four lead singers from four different bands routed in punk rock singing their songs and collaborating acoustically in a folk setting as a revival of traditional folk sessions where people used to just bring along their instruments and sing and play together. This tour involves Brian Fallon (The Gaslight Anthem/ The Horrible Crowes), Dave Hause (The Loved Ones), Chuck Ragan (Hot Water Music) and Dan Andriano (Alkaline Trio) plus Joe Ginsberg on upright bass and Jon Gaunt on the fiddle.

I think what I loved most about this show was the amount of fun the guys were having up on the stage and the respect that they showed for each other, always hugging, shaking hads between songs and requesting applause for other band members. It was like a group of best friends playing together and loving it, where choosing to walk on stage and sing or play along with one of the others at any given moment, was expected. Thats the way folk music should be. This word has already become cliche when talking of the Revival tour but camaraderie is the only way to describe the relationship that these guys have together. I've never watched a tour like this and maybe I never will again. 3 hours and about 47 songs! My only regret is that I won't be going to any shows at the end of the tour. By that time the band will be more familiar with each others songs and more collaboration can probably be expected.

Already being familiar with the work of Brian, Chuck and Dave; Dan Andriano was the only person who I didn't know what to expect from, but I was impressed by his voice and his musicianship if his songs did seem a bit samey on occasion. There were a few highlights of the show in my opinion. First of all Dave and Dan covering Joe strummers 'Coma Girl' a song that I love and totally unexpected, second was Meet You In the Middle by Chuck Ragan with Brian Fallon on backing vocals, third was Brian and Ian Perkins playing 'Ladykiller' by The Horrible Crowes. The audience just went quiet for this one, in silent awe, most people chose not to clap and sing along and just listen as he poured it all out in a real atmospheric performance. My fourth highlight was Brian playing Senor and The Queen acoustically, I love that song , especially in this format.

After the show my aim was to meet the band having been unsuccessful in the two hours before the show. Dan Andriano came out first and he was such a nice guy, grateful for the praise we (the approx 20 people who were waiting around with me) showered him with and thanking us deeply for supporting the tour and buying the tour compilation. I got his autograph on the Revival Tour CD.

Next I got Dave Hause to sign my copies of his own album 'Resolutions' and My tour CD. I briefly discussed what a fun tour it looks to play on and he agreed. I got a picture with him and said that I was hoping he would play his song 'Meet Me At The Lanes' as it was my favourite so he asked if I was going to any more shows. I wasn't so instead he offered to put me on the guest list to the closest show to me which was Nottingham. I was kind of shocked that he offered me this and of course agreed, getting myself a plus one in the process. What a nice guy though!

Chuck came out next but I only saw him for a second as his hands were full. I got my tour CD and his new 'Covering Ground' CD signed and told him it was my favourite of his yet.

It turned out that Brian Fallon was already on the bus so we asked Chuck to get him to come out and he eventually did, and was surrounded by the group. It was clear that most fans in the audience were Brian or Gaslight Anthem fans throughout the show and this made it clearer as the other guys got no where near the same attention.

I remember last time the Gaslight Anthem played Manchester. I got the chance to speak to Brian briefly and get an autograph on my 59' Sound cover but I thought asking for a picture would be a bit pushy so I didn't, and have regretted it ever since. This time I was hoping to get another chance and after waiting around for the band for a few hours before this show I thought I may not get the chance again. Luckily after the show I got my chance to get a picture with one of my heroes. I think what made it for me though were the conversations I had with him so I wanted to summarise here what Brian said and some things that we talked about, which may interest a few fans out there:

One girl wanted him to sign her tattoo on her leg in so that some tatto artist would be able to do it for her. Brian was hesitant to do this and tried to get her to reconsider, saying take this from me I'm covered in tattoos I don't like, this is another mans autograph on your body, it will be there on your wedding night etc. I thought this was nice of him to try and talk her out of it, but she wasn't having any of it so he signed her leg and from what I know (another Dimestore Saint) she is now tattooed.

One fan told Brian he'd recorded an EP and when asked if it was good the lad wasn't too confident. Brian  told him to be more confident, believe in his work, asking if it was true, if it was real. He told him that if he's written songs to write them to the absolute best that they can be and to just believe in yourself, making the point that this was the only few minutes he would have to inspire this kid so he wanted to make his words count. It was quite inspiring to me to hear him talk like that, being a songwriter myself.

Once I had my picture taken with him I thanked him for the Manchester show when I requested 'The Patient Ferris Wheel' for my birthday in November 2010. Brian had announced it on stage saying "This is a request, Have a great birthday tomorrow" before getting into it and I wanted to show my appreciation. I said you won't remember but I requested that song for my birthday and he said "I don't remember" but was glad he could help me out because he doesn't always take kindly to requests. Mostly its when people shout out for songs and interrupt though whereas I had a conversation with him before the show to put my request in. He told of one guy at Bristol Revival Tour the night before, who just kept shouting a song title over and over and Brian got annoyed saying Im much more less likely to play it if people shout it like that. I think thats fair enough, he said people who persist he would have thrown out because they impair the enjoyment of people around them and this is important to Brian. At this point I asked Brian if he'd seen the You Tube video of Dave Grohl kicking a fan out of the Foo Fighters show. He hadn't seen it but I recommended he did and he smiled and winked at me.

Next one guy asked if they enjoyed Glastonbury, but he was referring to when Bruce Springsteen joined them on stage. At this point I cringed, in fact I actually said people have asked you about that so many times it makes me cringe when I hear it and Brian turned to me with a smirk and said "It makes me cringe too"

He went on to stress that he does love the guy (Bruce) but he knows him on a personal level too, recalling a time when he invited his whole block round for a barbecue and Bruce asked to come. Brian told him that all these people would be there and they know who he is but Bruce still went round. Brian wants to concentrate on being Brian Fallon for now and find out who he is as opposed to all these comparisons with Bruce Springsteen and stressed that people shouldn't like him just because they like Bruce.

When discussing the new album Brian said he is writing songs on the road whilst on The Revival Tour but that they had recorded 11 songs. Brian wants 40 though which I gotta admit is Springsteen-esque but I wouldn't say it to him. I asked if Biloxi Parish would be on it and he said it probably would. When I asked him about it he said it is a place in Louisiana and when he was passing through there he hadn't been home in 6 months and missed it. The song is about those feelings and getting home from a long time on the road and is not actually about Biloxi Parish the place. This is obvious from the lyrics now but it was cool to hear it from him because he doesn't often divulge too much about his song meanings, preferring fans to make up their own minds.

Other bits of chit chat were about the tour bus. I asked if on the top floor its just a load of mattresses but he said its bunks and that he gets a surprisingly good sleep on there whereas I presumed it would be an uncomfortable kind of broken sleep. Brian mentioned his dog Frank currently staying with Alex Levine and his wife. Brian has him trained not to pee indoors but apparently he keeps doing it at Alex's. I asked him if he was worried that Frank would pee all over his house when he gets home and he did say he was worried about it. Frank is a rescued dog for those who don't know.

In the end most fans had dispersed and there was only myself and a fellow dimestore saint left  Brian signed my 'Elsie' and tour compilation and I shook his hand and told me he'd just topped off a great night for me, and a great night it was.

As I left I maged to chat to Ian who loved my Johnny Cupcakes T shirt and was wearing one himself. He actually said he had mine on the bus too. I got a picture and an autograph, he seemed like a really cool guy with a good sense of humour, Id have liked to chat with him longer but it was after 1am with this point, I had work the next day and the band needed to sleep at some point too.

I may add to this in the future when other bits and bobs come back to me, I know some bits may seem a bit pointless but they're there for you to read anyway.

Here are a few of my photos from the Manchester show.

Not forgetting my song of the blog. This time its Great Expectations (the Revival Tour version as filmed by ihearttheweakerthans on You Tube. Its in HD with decent sound too. Take a look below! Hopefully I'll get around to writing up the Nottingham leg soon!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v7FNJpyjMs&list=LLhdJ0hZKi_kcx_wLkuCQ0Iw&index=31

It Feels Like Heaven When You Can Sleep Through The Night

Its been a while between posts lately. To be honest there hasn't been much inspiration to write anything, that is until this week...

Monday 5th September 2011, the day The Horrible Crowes release their debut album 'Elsie'. Brian Fallon's blend of haunting night time music, a deep and meaningful album of hymns for lonely people. When you get into your room late at night, turn out the lights, turn this cd on and crash out and get lost in this dark world that Brian and Ian Perkins have created.

Its been a long wait for this album and but for the odd hitch here and there, (where djs played songs on the radio before they were allowed to do so), the album didn't seem to leak to a great degree until Sideonedummy released songs to Rolling stone and other sites. I'm glad it didn't really leak (not to my knowledge) and I agree with what Brian Fallon said in his blog. If I was a recording artist that had slaved over making something as good as it can be, I wouldn't want it being released until i said so. That would be my right, and those people who say they are such big fans that they have to hear it as soon as possible (even if it is streamed on some poor quality internet site) are just fools. The bigger fans will respect the views of the artists and be patient until the record is good and ready to be heard in its entirety. They won't get any personal thanks for it but I take my own satisfaction in knowing that I have respected the wishes of my hero and that as a whole he will appreciate those who waited.

As far as the album goes I think its genius! But I'm biased. The two songs 'Behold The Hurricane' and 'Go Tell Everybody' are the more upbeat ones and are the tracks that you could see The Gaslight Anthem playing but other than that I think the songs are very different in style to Gaslight (but for Brian's raspy vocals) for those who are expecting more of the same. The majority of the songs seem to be based around heartbreak, broken relationships, cheating girlfriends etc and aren't therefore songs you would play at a party, I really suggest listening something like this in your own time when you can really appreciate the words and quiet whispers on songs such as 'Cherry Blossom', 'Sugar' and 'I Believe Jesus Brought Us Together'. Its not really fodder for your car stereo either. Thats my opinion anyway. Stand out tracks to me are 'Lady Killer'; another break up song with a catchy chorus and 'I Witnessed A Crime'. The organ on the latter really reminds me of The E Street band and works perfectly alongside the bubbly base line. The lyrics in this seem to talk of a relationship that isn't working out and I guess I relate to being with someone where the interest in each other runs out. It may sound doomy and gloomy from all I've said but despite being a heartbreak album, you don't need to be heartbroken to enjoy this album. I wouldn't have thought it was for everyone but Im sure Fallon fans will love it, you can really hear his influences like Tom Waits, PJ Harvey etc.

The day before I received the album in the mail I listened to this hour long interview with Brian Fallon on WBJB radio in New Jersey. A really inciteful interview that any Gaslight Anthem fans may find interesting but also left me champing at the bit... Heres the link, hope it works...

Brian Fallon Interview

As for my own music. My plans were to record all my songs in acoustic demo before building up to a full band album. These plans have been set back by my holiday and then a break to one of my fingers. If you know me you are probably sick of me making a big deal about that right now but my left ring finger can't bend, thus I can't play chords and its really killing me that I can't pick up the guitar and play. Physio says Im about 10 days away, so I guess I'll just play the waiting game and maybe finish a few half written song lyrics ready to record when Im fit again. As it stands I have 10 songs recorded in demo. Here are the titles: Young and Wild, Neon Sign, Were You Thinking Of Me?, The Darkplace, Old Times, Sweetheart Serenade, Road of Life, Its Real, Janie Jones and The Footsteps Of Billy The Kid.  Just to hopefully keep people interested.

Young and Wild is currently on Soundcloud. If you haven't listened any, then please feel free and comment too but be nice ;)

Alex Magrath Soundcloud Channel

My song of the blog this week is predictably The Horrible Crowes and its called 'Lady Killer'  so click this link to watch. Finally I'll suggest that you go out and buy this album. When have I ever been wrong about this stuff before...

The Horrible Crowes - Lady Killer

Tell me what you saw, I'll tell you what you missed when the ocean met the sky...

Heres a little bed time story...

I headed down to Frank's Place, this old sailors bar down by the harbour. I'll go in there just like I do most of the pubs in this town, but week after week on a Thursday I'll strum the old folk songs on this beat up old acoustic guitar they have.  Its never too busy, just nice, the usual punters, some small groups, couples huddle away in the booths, some guys just come and sit; sit and drink the night away. Maybe they're sitting there without their lost loved one, maybe they just came in from a few days on the sea, or maybe they just couldn't get control of that television remote at home but I seem to have the attention of some of these sailors who sit there night after night to hear me strum my songs, applauding gently at the end of each number, sometimes they'll join me at the bar when I go for another whiskey. I like it though, it relaxes me, i'm in my own world, singing my heart out, they say nothing they just listen. One guy speaks up, asks for Whiskey In The Jar, and why not.

Part way through in walks Janey. Everybody in town would recognise her, I've seen her around. I hear she came out the rough end of a hard divorce some years back, never really settled down after that. I'd never seen her in Frank's though. She walked through got herself a drink of something clear and took a table at the back but she gave me this smile, I'm not sure if I was singing at all at this point, I joined the rest of my audience, transfixed...

She was young for her years, this long blonde hair, wavey like the sea... she had class. I regained my composure and sung one of my own numbers, a new one, they hadn't heard it before, Brothers... then I went up for another whiskey. People were filing out now, it was getting late but she walked over to me and introduced herself. She knew my name, maybe she'd heard me mentioned in one of the other seaside bars down by the shore. We didn't hang around either, we headed out and just walked, we walked and we talked down to the shore until we hit the boardwalk. It was peaceful, the waves crashed and that was the only sound besides our voices under the light of the moon. I think I got her, she seemed to get me, she could see why I enjoyed just singing the nights away in these quiet little pubs. I never felt I was good enough to make the big time, I was happy just being some kind of local hero but it was all about the music for me, I just needed that quietly appreciative audience and I'd keep coming back.

It felt like we talked for hours, leaning on the end of the pier staring out into the endless ocean. It was like I'd known her all my life, I wished she'd walked into that bar years ago. I pulled her to me with one arm around her shoulder as we leaned there in silence, to keep her warm in the night breeze I guess. I started singing low, right down at the bottom of my range, a sea song that I heard once and right then as I took in that sea air I thought... The ocean really does breathe salty... it went like this...

Click the link

Sun Kil Moon - The Ocean Breathes Salty

I didn't just write this story randomly, its based on the lyrics of one of my songs, a little acoustic track called Janey Jones. I hope you like it, follow the link below.

Janey Jones by Alex Magrath

We Need More Of These Nights They Always Go Too Fast...

By now some of you may have seen my song Young & Wild doing the rounds on facebook, twitter and soundcloud. Heres a bit about the song:

I have this ritual when I write songs, I have notebooks with countless lyrics scribbled into them, different versions and layouts of verses and choruses I've written over the years. When I have versions I am happy with I write them into my best songbook. Im now into my second songbook but Young & Wild comes half way through the first. I date each song when I finally write it in and Young & Wild came from 2006 which would have been the summer after my second year at university.

At this point University was getting serious. Every student knows first year doesn't count, we just partied hard and exams weren't taken seriously and as long as you passed with better than 40% average you were ok. Second year counted for 25% of my degree or something. In the words of my professor on graduation day "You did fuck all in second year" and he's right, if he was saying this it must have been bad, my average was in the mid forties so by third year it was time to really pull my finger out and get this degree. We'd had another year of serious partying, some people were squeezing work in between various nights out and social occasions but I was sleeping a lot, eating junk food, playing my guitar, watching dvds, drinking the nights away and just hanging out just like most students and all my friends would. It was a good time, the wider world was still a year away, we didn't have to worry about it yet we had a big group and most of us were pretty close to each other by now. I loved this group I still do most of these people, I dreaded the end of summer semester because I knew it would be three months before we could pick up where we'd left off. The concern for me was, I knew that as well as enjoying myself I'd have to work hard in third year, I also knew everyone else would be busier so at this point, two thirds of the way through my university career I couldn't help but feel nostalgic during summer break, like our best days were behind us now and third year would just be a let down. In some ways it was but as I was looking back I wrote a couple songs about friendship, youthful friendship, fun in the sun, hanging out kinda songs. One of which was Young and Wild but it was originally titled Young and Wired after the Bon Jovi lyric in their song 'In and Out of Love'. The song lyrics themselves are pretty self explanatory, we were our own people, we did what we wanted, we thought we were the kings of the road back then, nobody could keep us down we just walked around like we owned the place or something but we were just enjoying the life and so there it is, Young & Wild if you haven't listened it visit my facebook page and find the link on there.

As for my plans to record some of my songs to an album, progress is being made. I have a list of twelve songs I want to be on the album some of which are only partially written but its all one big work in progress. When I have all the demos done I will distribute the demos to various musicians that may be helping me and when they have learned the songs hopefully we can make stuff happen but this is time away at the moment. This album has a theme and therefore I also have a working title for it. The songs are all going to be linked by the dreams, hopes, regrets, wishes, experiences and stories of people just making their way through life. A few of the songs are slightly biographical or inspired by feelings that I have had at times but by no means are they all necessarily true stories about me, that will remain a mystery...

The song of the blog this time around is a song by a man named Dave Hause, this is a perfect song to fit with the subject matter of this blog post because it is about a guy looking back at all his old group of friends that have been spread out now and they arrange a reunion night were they re-live the crazy times of their youth. Ive only discovered this guy recently because he sings in a band called The Loved Ones and he will is one of a quartet that I will be watching on this autumns Revival Tour. Its a great song and if you like looking back on the past times and reminiscing like I do I think you will like this song, again maybe its one for those who were at uni and are now all spread out across the country, maybe you miss the rest of your old gang. Its all in the lyrics here guys there aren't any better videos of this currently on you tube but this is pretty good, click the link or better still look up the song on spotify to really be able to pick the lyrics out...

Dave Hause - Meet Me at The Lanes

Thanks for reading...

BON JOVI... We were born to follow!

In an earlier blog I said it was 6th time I would be watching Bon Jovi, correcting myself its actually the 7th and its still a great show even now! Although their latest albums aren't hitting the standards that their classic pre-2000 albums did, the energy and quality of the performance is still amazing to see.

Those who read this blog each time I post will know that in an earlier blog I have expressed my concerns about how Bon Jovi are now a business not just a band etc etc. That doesn't take away from the fact that they are one of my best bands of all time. Jon Bon Jovi is arguably the best front man in rock and he is backed by three of the best musicians in the business in Richie Sambora, Tico Torres and David Bryan and this makes for a hell of a show. Tonight was the Manchester show at Old Trafford Cricket Ground on the UK leg of the Greatest Hits tour and it was awesome!!! Heres a pic of the view we had although I'm sure it doesn't do it justice as we had a great view considering we arrived late.

I said before the show I wanted to hear my two favourites Blood on Blood and In These Arms and a couple of rarities and they didn't disappoint. They kicked the show off with Blood on Blood before playing through You Give Love A Bad Name and Born To Be My Baby. Blood on Blood is more of a song to end a show with, its an anthemic song about friends growing up and having each others backs and I like that in a song, I write several of my own songs with my own friends and memories in mind. In These Arms was also played and they even played their epic ten minute Dry County so I was content. Besides this they ripped through all the hits you would expect Its My Life, Bad Medicine, Wanted Dead or Alive, We Weren't Born To Follow and ending with Livin On A Prayer and with a few odd numbers thrown in between. For you romantics out there you may know Bed Of Roses which was also great. It was good to see Richie Sambora still at his electrifying best on the lead guitar despite another stint in rehab but Jon was struggling at times on the slippery stage with his leg in a splint as he awaits surgery on his ligaments. Heres a closer pic of the band...

The band were unfazed by the rain which poured throughout the show, JBJ joked about all the people sitting in the mud at Glasto and said he'd rather sell out stadiums on his own rather than with the help of fifty other bands. Tonights sell out show was reportedly played to 46,000 people. Thats 92,000 arms in the air, what a sight that must be from the stage! Although I liked and cheered at this comment I am annoyed that we didn't try and get to Glastonbury this year. If only you could be in two places at once...

I also liked the comment Jon made about having no pre-recorded tracks playing on stage with "no girly backing singers, this aint no reunion tour" etc unable to resist a dig at the music industry today.

Unfortunately I still feel this may be the last time I will see Bon Jovi live, not because I'm bored after 7 shows but because I am now content that I've seen them enough. I have seen them play all of their hits several times over and there are still more songs rarely played in their shows that I would love to see but the chance of them playing those songs are getting slimmer with every new album released. On top of this ticket prices are going up as I have mentioned before. Tonight they played Work For The Working Man, a song about regular people coping with the recession. At face value its a good song but its marred by hypocrisy in my opinion. How can Jon Bon Jovi sing for the working man when ticket prices have shot up for a band that don't even need the money anymore. However this is just a small complaint about a great night.

So although I am in Bon Jovi retirement as of tonight its not because I wouldn't want to see them again its just I want to prioritise bands I haven't seen as much of. I still want to be at the front to watch Bruce Springsteen, The Gaslight Anthem, Against Me!, I've never seen the Counting Crows or Augustana (and I want too!),  and Matchbox Twenty will tour again soon. Having said that I could be like Paul Scholes for England... I may consider coming out of retirement if asked...

My song of the blog this time has to be a Bon Jovi song so I thought I would put up this video of In These Arms which I took at the show. The sound quality is decent. Click the link below to watch...

Bon Jovi - In These Arms live in Manchester 24.06.11

For those who have never seen Bon Jovi, maybe you have been tempted in the past, you should go they will play for two and a half hours and you won't be disappointed. 

Bon Jovi rock! May this continue for years to come...

The biggest man you've ever seen!

I apologise in advance if this gets a bit deep and meaningful. Its been a good weekend, Wigan beat Saints in the derby in one of our performances of the season, we had a bbq, the weather held for our party, we had a good a night out, I saw some friends i hadn't seen in a while, but this has all been marred by the death of one of my favourite musicians: Clarence Clemons, The Big Man, age 69, the best saxophonist you ever saw, he had a big heart, a big smile and big lungs too and has spent nearly four decades playing his sax alongside Bruce Springsteen in The E Street band! Before I ramble on heres a couple pictures I've found on brucespringsteen.net and three others off various websites.

In an ideal world guys like Clarence would live forever but nature has taken its course in the cruel way that it does. Its hard to explain how upsetting this passing is for me, Bruce Springsteen and The E Street band are my all time favourites so it cuts me up to see band members leaving like this. I first discovered Bruce Springsteen back in about 1998 with his greatest hits album and since then I've never looked back as his performances and songwriting both with and without The E Street band have been nothing but inspirational to me. When you see The E Street Band perform you can see the closeness between the band members, they are like family and if I'm upset about Clarence passing I can't imagine how Bruce himself and the rest of the band must feel right now. Organ player Dan Federici one of the original band members passed away in April 2008 but the band played on. Can The E Street Band ever be the same again without their token saxophonist, I'm not so sure. I'd like to think so but I don't know how I would feel watching the band without Clarence or with someone else in his place. Time is taking its toll on one of the most legendary bands ever to take the stage and knowing the great songs that they continue to produce its upsetting to me that their era is slowly coming to an end. I'm just glad I was able to see the full band live in concert before all this began to happen and from now on, these great musicians will just have to live on in our memories.

Bruce Springsteen released this statement on his website:

It is with overwhelming sadness that we inform our friends and fans that at 7:00 tonight, Saturday, June 18, our beloved friend and bandmate, Clarence Clemons passed away. The cause was complications from his stroke of last Sunday, June 12th.

Bruce Springsteen said of Clarence: Clarence lived a wonderful life. He carried within him a love of people that made them love him. He created a wondrous and extended family. He loved the saxophone, loved our fans and gave everything he had every night he stepped on stage. His loss is immeasurable and we are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly forty years. He was my great friend, my partner, and with Clarence at my side, my band and I were able to tell a story far deeper than those simply contained in our music. His life, his memory, and his love will live on in that story and in our band.

This suggests that the band will play on and I wouldn't be surprised to see Bruce write a song in tribute to Clarence as he did with Dan Federici. When Dan; not as prominent a figure at the front of the stage like Clemons (but just as important) passed away I was gutted then but I don't remember feeling like this. Clarence had this loveable presence on stage, Springsteen would share banter with him night after night and the audiences loved him, so did I. He will be sorely missed by all the fans.... 

There are many great sax solos that Clarence has played, Born To Run, Sherry Darling but most notably 'Jungleland'. This is my favourite of all the Bruce Springsteen songs, the romantic imagery between 'The Rat' and 'The barefoot girl' and the story that unfolds is nothing short of a masterpiece in this ten minute song. For about 3 minutes in the middle though is the best saxophone solo that you will ever hear where Clarence steps to the front of the stage and takes over. I hope you take the time to watch this video, I realise it is ten minutes but it is worth it and when you do bear in mind that Clarence has continued to belt this solo out way into his late sixties with the same precision that he could in his thirties and take into account he has had surgery in both knees and this video was only shot in 2009 so he sits down for the most part. Found myself welling up when I watched this...

Jungleland - Live Hyde Park Calling 2009

Thanks for the music and the memories, see you further on up the road Big Man, 

Rest in peace....

Eric fell in love with an FBI informant.

In my last blog post I hopefully introduced some of you to the band Against Me! Their singer is a man named Tom Gabel and in between the last two Against Me! records Tom recorded his own seven song EP called 'Heartburns'. This was a collection of songs that were mostly driven by political motivation but one song in particular I've found interesting, the song 'Anna is a stool pigeon'. Apparently a stool pigeon is an old term for a police informant but is also a hunting term. Anyway I was listening to a podcast with a half hour interview with Tom Gabel and he was playing a few of his new songs in between talking. He explained that he got the idea for this song out of Elle magazine when he read a story about this girl only known as 'Anna'. This is the article but read to the end of this blog before you read it.

Elle Magazine article about 'Anna'

Basically, this Anna was at some sort of activist movement and she became associated and hung out with some pretty hardcore activists. Whether she felt threatened by them or what they were capable of I'm not sure but she ended up writing an article about them. The FBI saw it and decided they wanted to pay her to go undercover with some activists and be an informant, to keep an eye on them in case they should start some trouble. Anna became an undercover activist and infiltrated a group of three people named Eric McDavid, Lauren Weiner and Zachary Jenson and maybe a few others.

The impression I'm getting is that they weren't really a dangerous group, they were standing up for what they believed in but from what I've read so far, they weren't planning on taking it to the next level and conducting acts of terrorism. Tom suggested that Anna hadn't had a lot of attention from her father when she was growing up and that she maybe felt she had something to prove to the FBI so she began to encourage these three activists to become a bit more hardcore (but this could just be speculation as Anna said she had a regular upbringing), as in blowing up the Nimbus Dam in Sacramento California as well as some other locations. These guys didn't know how to build bombs but Anna did because the FBI had provided her with fake recipies as part of her cover. Using these recipies would build something that would perhaps spark and smoke but not explode but it would outline the groups intention to make bombs.  These guys didn't even have a car to drive to buy the ingredients but Anna sorted that out as well. It seems Eric had a crush on her and therefore perhaps trusted her more than he should have and went along with her encouragement but it turned out Anna was recording the conversations and even videoing their living space, thus entraping Eric. This is what is called a 'thought crime' (from Orwells 1984) where the thoughts are there but no actions are taken yet and Eric has been sent down for 20 years in solitary confinement. His two friends pleaded guilty to smaller offences and had it easier when they testified against Eric to save their own skin. Isn't entrapment a crime in itself. My interpretation of the story is that Eric was set up but if you read the article in Elle it does suggest in places that he wasn't quite all there (but this is only from what Anna has said).

These are the events as I know them but don't by any means hold me to these as facts. It is a true story one way or another but this is just my interpretation you should come up with yours and decide if you feel Eric should be locked up so watch this song by Tom Gabel and listen to the words because they pretty much tell the story.

Anna is a Stool Pigeon - Tom Gabel

 Once you have watched it you can visit the support Eric website which contains the background info, court documents, letters that Eric has written from the inside and more. I've found it interesting and after hearing Tom Gabel's song and his own explanation of the story as he sees it I couldn't help but feel like Eric was wrongly imprisoned for the better part of his life. Since reading the Elle article I'm not as sure. They definitely took action to make and test bombs and were caught buying the ingredients but I think my argument is that without Anna coaxing them into it they probably wouldn't have aimed for such drastic action.

http://supporteric.org/index.html

Please discuss if you wish....