brassey and trin go all tex-mex

What strange places we 'play'! Not quite a disco, but we will be doing the music on October 8th 2006 at this place, the buffet coach at Midsomer Norton South station! We'll also be doing the cooking and washing up. This can sometimes be a funny old job!

We're doing a Mexican Food Day for charity and the meal will be accompanied by some genuine Mexican music (on CD, not live!). We are planning a Hallowe'en event, provisionally on 28 October, also something for New Year.

To book for the Mexican Food Day please email SDRHTSales@aol.com or check out the S&D blogsite. 

sexy's pop's back

Just when you thought it safe to switch on the radio. What is it with these reunion bands lately? Take 'Take That' back they came to a fanfare of noise and applause from the media. They were splashed all across the tabloids and interviewed by every radio DJ in the land. They scrabbled up a few rather large venues and sold tickets at 65 quid each. And everyone fell over themselves to buy them. Sell out. Success. But at no point the threat of the 'return' they didn't frighten us with more 'music' why? Because they have astute business managers who knew it would never work. Their hits album sold like hot cakes over Christmas and everyone remembered them in a haze of of reminiscent love. Even Robbie Williams was nice about it all... That probably helped a lot.
"So", thought all the other boy and girl bands everywhere. Those ones that had some minor success and folded. Why not us?
This week we see The All Saints back on the market. Reformed and putting all the bitchy nasty slagging each other off behind them (yeah right) and they 'love' each other. Back together. New single. Lots of interviews and lots of reassurances that they are now friends forever awwwww?
Come on, they HATED each other. The prima donnas that make up the Appletons (did you watch I'm a celebrity?) One of them married a Gallagher FFS. That must take some face.
Mel and Shaznay. Mel was always the 'nice' one but Shaz was a right cow.
But we are to forget all of that and look forward to a future with The All Saints.
Well personally I think the musical world was better when they were all hid in their respective million dollar homes and left us alone. The new single 'Rock Steady' is bland, insipid and leaves me cold.
It's sugar coated pop. There's so much good new music, exciting and fresh out there. Why rehash what was never good in the first place.
And this leads me suitably to the worst news to hit Tracks and Tracks this week.
In a North London Shopping centre a monster raised its ugly head once again today.
Yes.... The boyband with "The Power To Rock You". 5ive have announced their come back.
Be prepared for more 5ive tracks by next Spring.
Of course it's not all galaxy smooth chocolate in the 5ive camp. Apparently 5ive have become four with Sean not actually interested anymore. Give that guy a curly wurly. He probably has a real job in Asda by now.
5ive hit the charts at a time when we couldn't absorb enough crap. We LOVED crap. We were in Spice girl fever. We wanted as much glitter and candy as possible. We loved music by Lolly and A1. We all knew the S Club 7 dances. We had Spice world on video.
It was known as mass mental pop illness. Groups like Nirvana worked hard to break the candy M&M shell. As the millennium hit and as the Dome closed, music seem to thrust forward and the pop bubble burst.
So why after a mere 6 years is pop trying to once again sugar my tea?
I'm turning diabetic immediately.

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the art of being uncool

Some shots of the progress at Midsomer Norton on the famous Somerset and Dorset Railway, soon to become Britain's first new steam WORKING railway for almost a hundred years!

The S&D is effortlessly cool, but some people make such an effort at being uncool you wonder where they get the energy! Like the kids who have all the clothes, all the attitude and then spoil it all by shoving one of grandad's fags in their mouth! Tell 'em somebody ...

But this is a true story, Bristol, a few days ago. Me and Trin at the White Hart bash. Now we'd given 'em a blend of the better mainstream stuff, some real dance music, a few classics (from the 90s), and even Plan B. But then one 'grannie' comes off the dancefloor and says (stop me if you've heard this before) 'We like all the modern stuff, we know Coldplay, but could you play some seventies?'

Coldplay? Excuse me? You mean great grandad's favourite clean students, playing that quiet music where you can hear the words? You trying to impress us Gran? Don't try. Go back to the dancefloor, you were doing okay to 'Rock Lobster'. Don't spoil it ... 

never happened in the 70's

What was going through someone's mind when they named Beyonce's new Album B'Day?
Note Wiki

"A bidet is a low-mounted plumbing fixture or type of sink intended for washing the external genitalia and the anus".

There are several rather odd album names in the charts this week.
Scissor Sisters and 'Ta Dah'?
The shaky Shakira with 'Oral Fixation' and Pink 'I'm Not Dead' (was there some doubt?)
But B-Day takes the piss by far.

you make me feel like dying

Trin has already brought this up. Seventies music please ...

Now stop right there. The seventies were the Dark Ages for music. Why would any DJ, particularly cutting-edge ones, play music that was designed to celebrate the nuclear annihilation of the human race? Music from a decade when the height of fashion was the IRA tank top and flares. Where even my dad had long hair and a zapata moustache? When Railway Magazine was 20p and I earned £9 a WEEK??

We are designed to forget that decade. The music celebrated the defeat of the human spirit. We were spiralling into terminal decline with Edward Heath, Leo Sayer and Marje Proops leading the collapse.

It's scary. Teenagers listen to the most awful pap, Daniel O'Donnell at 1 decibel. And people from 'our' generation for the most part seem to have stopped their musical development at the age of 19, hence their nihilistic nostalgia for the 70s.

Get this - discos are for DANCING. Dance music did not arrive till the late 80s, growing from Chicago House and Factory in Manchester, the rave scene and a return to basics.

But, to be fair, I'm game. There must be something from the seventies that just by chance uses a dance beat. The Sweet? Sex Pistols. It's a struggle. Slade? With a dash of irony and more than a dash of alcohol it might just work, so perhaps at the next gig a bit of seventies will get slipped in. But what's the betting it clears the dancefloor and we have to do a quick recovery?

But that's the beauty of DJing - unpredictability and having to think on your feet. Watch this space!!

superstar... you got any 70's?

I see Brassey has written a little review of our gig this weekend. I was so looking forward to it... But I was ill. Superstar DJ's don't get ill I hear you cry... Unless it's too much vodka and redbull or catnip.
I still managed to make a small mark for music though.
I still think it's a responsibility of a good DJ to play good music and try to enlighten the masses a bit. You can never please everyone. Everyone's musical taste is so different. We did ok with the youth. They seemed happy until Brassey played some of his stuff like New Order.
The worst bit was the over 50's. They came up several times and asked if we could switch to 70's music. 70's? Like the New Seekers? ShowaddyWaddy? Sweet?
We didn't have any. Then someone asked if I had Aga Doo by Black Lace. If I was forced to play that track I'd have to garrot myself.
Brassey got an excellent response to Kylie. I hate Kylie. She should have stayed in Neighbours.
We finished our gig and were packing up, when another 70's comment was made... 'disappointed at the lack of 70's'.
So Brassey thinks we might carry a few 70's cds for the future.
Ok... As long as this doesn't mean we are EVER going to start playing bloody Elvis Presley or any 50's crap.
Want a disco? Call us. We are very reasonable.... and awfully cute.

private party

lights ...



kiddies ...



kiddies and grannies ...



wulf finds it all too much ...

White Hart, Bristol, 16 September 2006.

Okay, so not every party can have international DJs providing the entertainment, but that's exactly what happened in Bristol last night, as Brassey Digger and DJ Trin answered the call of a friend and laid on a serious night's entertainment in the tiniest of venues. It was a surprise party so we've had to keep it secret on the Tracks and Tracks site.

Needless to say it was great fun and highly successful. Now to spend the proceeds on new CDs. Fopp in Bristol can expect us on Friday! 

lascivious laura

Don't get me restarted on the youth of today. You know it's my fav subject EVER. But FFS. Picture me, driving home tonight 8pm. The radio is on. They have this thing where you can send in your ultimate playlist. Tell them a bit about yourself. How cool trendy and interesting you are. Then they play three tracks you love.
Today was Laura. The lovely Laura. How many girls do we know called Laura. Are they all the same?
Laura is 20. She's 21 in a few months time. This weekend she's going with her BF Matt to see Robbie Williams in concert.
Then they play a Robbie track /yawn.
Then we find out that she goes out clubbing with her mates. They are 'COMPLETELY mental' /yawn.
Then they play Black Eyed Peas. My humps /yawn
Then we find out that she loves Dirty Dancing and has watched the video so much it's worn out. Tee Hee Laura.
Then they play The New Basement Jaxx track that always makes me laugh because of the line about going out on the town and having a chicken Fajita.
Then we find out that for Laura's 21st Birthday her and love of her life Matt have tickets to see Shayne Ward (no yawn just a large bile stained vomit)
Hang on a sec Laura. Are you hiding behind the few tracks that may have some street cred... But REALLY you have the musical taste of a Fruitbat?
Who admits on national radio to having tickets to see the man who puts chav into Manchester?
Plus how about this Matt character? Robbie Williams? Shayne Ward? You SURE he's straight Laura Love?
I really need a mp3 player in my car.......

window mix

It seems Trinity Towers is in need of new windows for her to view the world passing by.
At 9 am the van turns out and out jump a few burly window men complete with fag in mouths and baseball caps.
Now... How to keep men motivated enough to finish the job tout suite and professionally?
Of course. Trin's Disco mega "Window Mix".
So on goes the decks. I did ask if they had any particular taste in music. One mentioned Stevie Wonder and I immediately knew my job for the day was to fill his senses with music of less dubious trend.

I thought I'd start with some very charty stuff like 'Sexy Back' and 'Maneater' by Nelly Furtado. Within 2 minutes I heard the noise of a window frame being dropped from a great height. It was working. Then we had a touch of the Editors, Panic at the Disco, The Automatic and Pussycat Dolls (window fitters are BIG Pussycat Doll fans)
Then Arctic Monkeys and the fantastic Bob Sinclair whose fast becoming a firm favourite here at Trin Towers.
As an old frame was being pushed out over the cats sat in the front, I turned up The Kooks 'Naive' and hoped for the best.
I'm going for the kill now with Brassey's favourite boys Plan B.
I'm sure a spot of well planned swearing will shift them to actually put glass in the frames.
Watch this space...................
Soon to be found in Woolworths complete with large security patch over track Listing....
DJ Trin's Window Mix. (With free J cloth).

I love my chick

Being top notch Dj's doesn't come easily to me and Brassey.... Ok it's fun but keeping on top of the best tracks for our punters to get their freak on with is a real task.
Wherever we go we're on the look out for that one track that will make the difference between a gig and a party.
Today we were in Woolworths, hardly cutting edge but they sometimes have some real bargains. They had cd's for 99p a few weeks back.
They had a lot of compilation albums, and very reasonable too.... Except the stupid idiots had placed the huge square security tag over every single track listing. Unbelievable. When I go next I'm taking my camera and I'll blog it.
I approached this sales assistant and explained my predicament. She was totally unhelpful. She said that's how they're TOLD to place them.
She refused to even acknowledge that it was stupid. Guys, Woolworths staff REALLY need some lessons on Customer relations.
So we bought nothing. I will not buy a cd there again..... I'd rather patron the fantastic FOPP in town. Keep the decent small businesses going.
Getting ready for a gig has really highlighted the lack of decent dance music ATM. There's a lot of really good older stuff but the new stuff really isn't hitting my G Spot at all.
Maybe I'll make an exception for Justin Timberlake. He's a nice guy. His comeback track Sexy Back is ace. Insistent beat. Yeah. No crap. Yeah. Straight in for the kill. Yeah.
An instant dancefloor filler. Ignore it at your peril.

"Dirty babe

You see these shackles

Baby I'm your slave

I'll let you whip me if I misbehave

It's just that no one makes me feel this way"

And at the other end of the scale we have the BBC's fame academy contestant Lemar with his new track 'It's Not That Easy' . It's had a lot of radio air play. Lemar, home grown. Nice voice. Nice guy, easy going boy next door type. But dull as fuckery. As Brassey puts it. He's Marvin Gaye minus the talent and charisma. I'd rather loop Justin Hawkins singing 'Get your hands off of my woman Mother fucker' over and over on the disco set than play this pile of tross.

tross everywhere

Trin coined the word 'tross' quite by chance, and it perfectly describes what I'm listening to at the moment. I'm trying to track down just a few killer tracks to add to my DJ repertoire, looking for little unknown gems on compilations etc, but to find 'em you have to trawl through loads of tross.

What other business would allow so much rubbish to be produced? I'm not just talking about pop, but you find it in everything, reggae, dance, soul, classical, jazz. Couldn't these trossers get the message that they just weren't up to the job of producing enduring, killer music? You'd spit most of this out if it were a sandwich.

I blame the kids and old folk, 'cos they've either got no discrimination or taste, or their brains have turned to powder. Yet they still buy tross and perpetuate the market.

I haven't found a thing worth playing today ... 

I don't feel like buying actually...

I hate driving to work. I hate the mindless following the same route day after day and the irritation at any car who dares to be in front of me. I also hate the radio. I've often had conversations with people who live in different parts of the country who seem to have good radio station. Down here we don't.
But I hate driving with the fear of an audible rattle in the car and worry that it's about to explode. So I crank up crap radio and hope for the best.
The best however is not the Scissor Sisters. I have their first album. I'm still not entirely convinced by it but taking the Pink Floyd classic 'Comfortably Numb' and Gaying it up was brilliant.
They've been away a while and now they're back. The front Gay guy Jake and his side kick Ana. Lots of showmanship and colour. But talent?
The new track (I don't feel like Dancing) is an embarrassing Bee Gees type rehash. I've heard it several times and each time I hate it more. It has no substance, body or flavour. It's high pitched noise that would drive next doors Dog out of it's cage.
So why is it number one in the download charts?
I was always convinced that those intelligent enough to use downloads and mp3 players wouldn't buy into the crap tracks like Shayne Ward or Ronan (fucking) Keating. So for Christmas this year do not buy your old Grannie an Ipod. If I see Daniel O'Donnell in the download charts I may Implode.
Maybe I'm being unkind to the Scissor Sisters. They don't pretend to be something they aren't. They are basically entertainers. Their talent is their stage persona. Groups however cannot sit on their laurels and fire out tracks to us based on reputation. U2 are especially to blame for that kind of behaviour. They think we are U2 . Everything we do is brilliant.
Umm wake up check Bono. Retire... Go on. Do the whole world a huge favour.

switzerland's surprising seetalbahn

A modern unit on the roadside track.



Why this line has the worst accident record on the SBB.



One of the famous Crocodiles pulling a short train through Seon, 1960s.



Probably the best book on the line.

I discovered the Seetalbahn back in the late 80s, on a four month trip around Europe. I was camping at Mosen and the line ran right by the campsite. The key feature of the line is its roadside running, unusual for a standard gauge line and unique on the Federal Railways. There was a good variety of freight trains, also regular passenger trains in both directions. The trains were very well patronised.

The line was originally titled, in English, the Lake Valley Railway. It's been under fire for years because of it's poor safety record, though all of the accidents have been caused by idiot car drivers! There are, of course, hundreds of level crossings, mostly unprotected. However the Swiss very rarely close railways and in fact the line has benefited from a lot of investment recently, mainly in the form of modern tram-like rolling stock.

The route is pastoral and flat for Switzerland, but with excellent views and runs alongside the lakes which give the Seetal its name.

Well worth a visit! The trains run from Luzern to Lenzburg.