Matjiesfontein Show & Tell

This weekend was spent in Matjiesfontein Show & Tell Art & Music Festival.
What an amazing weekend. I met so many artistic people. I raffled off a giant quilt to the local children. And I performed some of my folk songs on Friday night. And snapped some great pics too, here are a few...

My Music

LATEST NEWS: I've uploaded 4 of my songs onto Reverbnation, go HERE to listen to them. And I'm gigging tonight at ALMA CAFE. Can't wait! And I had my first lesson in SONAR (a music programme) yesterday. Supah dupah exciting times!:)

i love youuu

i love youuu
Originally uploaded by artisticana

Happy weekend!

Fiona Hare (me!) playing the piano at the Kimberly Hotel

Band Watch

This week has been all about watching bands. On Tuesday night I watched two great Cape Town bands perform at The Waiting Room: Witness to Wolves & Tape, Hiss & Sparkle. Witness to Wolves is a four piece band, kind of Evanescance feel with a real nice acoustic vibe, with chello, guitar and djembe and the stunning lead singer Natalie Lucia.

Tape, Hiss & Sparkle is a more alternative folk rock band the lead singer Simon sounding like a cross between Eddie Vedder & Placebo. I like his stage presence, there's something very genuine about him. These are part of the This is your Life Sessions.

Tongight I am going to watch Madosini & Derek Gripper at Alliance Francais. It's going to be great, Madosini is the Queen of Xhosa music, and Derek is an amazing guitarist playing music from his four solo releases on New Cape Records, as well as new songs captured on his latest CD, "Rising," recorded with master tabla player Udai Mazumdar from India/Switzerland. Gripper's unique guitar style embraces the styles of Cape music, early classical music, African kora and guitar techniques, as well as global contemporary composition (Gismonti, Takemitsu) to create a new guitar music which is nevertheless firmly rooted in the Western Cape.

Finally, we have Derek Liesegang's band performing at the Labia tomorrow, Friday. It will be a night of musical decadence. He sings like Elliot Smith. What a great week of music this week, we are definately spoilt for choice!

Lissie

Another new female artist I am liking is Lissie. i love these pictures. great ideas for a shoot...

A Fine Frenzy

Another singer/ singwriter I am listening to at the moment is A Fine Frenzy. This song apparently featured on the last New Moon CD - Almost Lover. It's beautiful. Listen to it here.. Like me she has a fixation for fantasy, C. S. Lewis, E. B. White, Lewis Carroll, Anthony Trollope, and Charles Dickens. Her artist name, "A Fine Frenzy", is taken from a verse in William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (Theseus, Act 5, Scene 1: "The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling, doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven"). After teaching herself to play the piano, she began putting her creative energy into writing songs.
My other favourite song of hers is What I wouldn't do and also Red Ribbon Foxes

Isbells

Something I am listening to at the moment is Gaëtan Vandewoude, the lead singer of the Isbells. The four-piece recorded their debut album in a stable in the Belgian woodlands, infusing the record with a soft twang and the scent of pine needles. There is a tougher edge to some songs, perhaps coming from Vandewoude’s past days as a guitarist for an emocore band. We’re not quite sure how he made the jump, but we’re very thankful for it.

Isbells’ self-titled debut album will be released in Australia on October 8th on Rogue Records through Inertia. If you can’t wait until then, you can grab a free download of ‘As Long As It Takes’ here. Watch this beautiful clip here

Still looking..

and i'm still looking for that perfect band mate who can sing and play guitar like no other, who can write songs and interprate songs with empathy and gentle spirit. band mate i am looking for you..

At this point..

i am trying to put research into the building of my home studio. dang it's difficult. the right equipment, the right cost, drivers, sounds cards etc etc. i want to try my hand at Studio arrangment. Here is a song by Jenny Owen Youngs who got a degree in Studio arrangement and this song is resonating with me just a little bit. You can listen to it here

this weekend i...

walked in the forest
ate sushi
started a quilt
drank tequila

Today i am listening to Angus & Julie Stone they are my favourite band at the moment. soft gentle music, ozzie kids with great harmonies. brother & sister band. Watch their laid back music video here (click the link)

September Flickr

1.) by will vastine on flickr
2.) by la sendi on flickr
3.) by nikolinelr on flickr.

the top photo is of a couple who got tattoos together. she got a line drawing of her first slr camera, he got an image of the shutter speed/ apature settings he wanted to remember, sweet.

There's this thing i want to do

i wanna play hillbilly music. yes yes yes. i found this great website of photography (do yourself a favour and just go see the pictures they are awesome and captures the spirit so well.) Photos by TimLaBarge. It's the annual Pickathon Music Festival held in Portland, Oregon. Go to the Pickathon website here - Indie Roots Music.. i wish we could do it here in South Africa!

Things on my heart

I'm pleased to say i have achieved my heart's desire this year, and bought the DSLR of my dreams (Canon 500D) i've been having fun with it ever since. however, i'm going to the Okavango Delta next month and therefore need a longer lends so i bought a 70 - 300mm from Orms but it just sucked horribly, with soft focus and loss of clarity, so i took it back (they very kindly did) and now i have a Voucher for the same value. i am thinking of getting either: the 18 - 135 mm lens (a much better idea! as i can use this lens every day in shoots) or the new mik en drik Canon Powershot SX210 IS, omg this baby is small but deadly with 14 x optical zoom, i want it, i want it. You can read a rad write up about it here and then the fun write up here

Warmwaterburg - Some pics from my road trip in July

Some of my pics from the Warmwaterberg. this place is totally amazing. You can sit in the rain in the middle of winter with the drizzle coming down on your face and you're all warm and cozy sitting in a hotspring, heaven.

Wellington - Some pics from my road trip in August

My friends bought a small holding in Wellington and we visited them last month and this is their neighbour's yard. He collects beat up Mercedes. Interesting hobby. Stamps would be easier. Anyway, this is my wish: to buy a farm, to dig in the ground, to grow things, and to have 2 big dogs.

nice pics

A few nice pics that made it into my blog, from DayDream Lily's blog

hummingbird Cake

omg JUST LOOK AT THIS CAKE! a dude baked it. Found off my other favourite blog Lucky Pony
i HAVE to EAT it RIGHT now!!! should i try and make this? i dont know, everything i bake turns out hideously. well if a dude can then i HAVE to try. oh the shame!

16 hours later:
Lol, so anyway, i made this last night, and it turned out PERFECTLY! i took it to my girlfriends immediately and we shared it amongst red wine and bragging rights. this is a fool proof recipe, YUM. i've got it at work today so we can have more of it and then it is going home to boyfriend so he can try it to..

Camping

These pics are too cute, found off http://greenweddingshoes.com/a-fun-camping-engagement-session/

Matjiesfontein Show & Tell

So this September is what we've all been waiting for, the incredible artistic weekend of Show & Tell in Matjiesfontein. It's a time where you just get together and be creative. My idea for the weekend is to make a massive "i heart Matjies" Quilt.
You can view what the Matjiesfontein Blog here


Knitters and crocheters, young and old, experienced or just starting out are invited to participate in a collaborative knitting installation. All materials will be supplied, however remnant wool is gladly accepted. Experience is not necessary.

Happy Spring!

Today is the 1st of September. Happy Spring!!!
(Pic taken by Jo, off http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com)