under another sun

Obsessed today with using our new drier. We have a massive backlog of washing, and using it (it is highly eco friendly) fills me with glee. No more clothes horses hung with damp clothes in winter.  Otherwise my brain a bit sluggish after a poor night's sleep. I migrated from the cess pit that is X formerly twitter before Musk ruined it, onto Bluesky. This already more welcoming. I'm @peter-kenny.bsky.social     Took Pat and Maureen fish and chips at lunchtime, and then lurked indoors in the afternoon. Watched the end of The Traitors which was great fun. Read more of the hallucinogenic The Golem .  Thirteen years since Clameur, the album with me and Matt.

Lorraine up early today, to give Beth a lift back from the station to her flat and then to work. I got up and sought out my Chelsea socks, and tinkered with poems for a while. Breakfast later, and then found myself watching the Royal Wedding. Found myself drawn into the pomp and enjoying the acknowledgement of black people in it. Spotting Camilla - look it's Jane! Lorraine particularly enjoyed a fiery speech by an American preacher Michael Curry. I still say off with their heads though, although the Brits do market themselves as a heritage industry quite well. After this Dawn came around, and had a cheeky cup of tea and a catch up with us. Nice to see her. Then off to Anton's house for some food (home made wings with woof woof sauce, pulled pork and some lovely salads and so on). And the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester United. It was a dire game but Chelsea won it, with a penalty scored by the best player on the park guv'nor, Chelsea's Belgian maestro Ed...

More organising and sorting. Trying to protect my leg which hurts in foot and knee. Lorraine came home at lunchtime and we ended up sneaking off for a nap in the afternoon and had a relaxed and happy evening. Spoke to Helen Russell, who is a composer with an idea for an opera who got in touch with me earlier this week after hearing Clameur . She is based in Hove I am going to meet her next week to explore the project more, and hear some of what she's been working on. She's really enthusiastic and working rapidly, so it will be very interesting to meet her. Interesting to make new connections.

Up after a poor night's sleep and walked off into the sunshine to the station and into London without incident. Read a story called The Garden of Forking Paths by Borges. Very splendid it was too. Another potentially dangerous bottleneck of the crowd trying to leave the platform at Victoria. I took my phone from my pocket to photograph it, and I later tweeted this to Southern Rail and Gatwick Express. In this act, I realised later, my work pass slipped from my pocket and was lost. Gah. Into work and little or nothing to report. Wrote, with pauses to regroup my brain, went down to by food from the Pure chain which is downstairs. They do rather good soups. Listened on my earphones to Clameur during the afternoon. I am always surprised at how good parts of it are. Home without incident again. My lovely Lorraine and Claudia at home, and we spent a good deal of time chatting. Claudia told us that Wednesday in Finland is called Little Saturday and is an opportunity for drinking. W...

Meteorologists predict that today will be the last day of the summer weather. And for me the day fell into the nice pattern of the last week. Up and working fairly quickly and fluently on the book.  Then a trip to the gym for an hour or so. Forgot a teeshirt to change into after showering so had to buy one, shopping aromatically in my sweaty one. Then to Starbucks in a new teeshirt for a large cup of tea and  that all-important change of scene as I worked. Sat next to a young European-looking couple who were chatting in a strange language. Invariably I have a rough idea, but this was like nothing I'd heard. Perhaps they were time travellers from the future. More email with my new and interesting friend Chiara, who is a Guernsey born cellist, singer and composer. I am sending her a copy of Clameur and A Guernsey Double . From what she tells me about her musical tastes it will be fascinating to hear how she sets A Return . In the evening, after I cooked a rather tasty chick...

Wintry morning, and Sussex hit quite badly by a bit of snow, closing schools and leaving people stranded overnight on the motorway into Brighton from London. This did mean that Lorraine could work from home, choosing to do an endless report on a school which took her all day. I finished, putting in several more hours, the pesky freelance job, made difficult by a mushy brain brought on by a extremely bad night's sleep. Good, professional client called David. This helps immensely. A bit of simple politeness and a willingness to listen on both sides can help get great results. Out to a meeting nearby this afternoon, and the snowy streets starting to thaw. Walked up the hill following a group of boys scooping snow off cars and menacing each other with it. One appraised me with a handful of snow, but sensibly thought the better of it. I had to nix the journey to Chichester to see Clameur performed. Tiredness, and reinvigorated prostatitis meant the prospect enduring...

Ah the bliss that is Friday. Felt very happy on the train this morning, which was even on time today. I listened to Over by Peter Hammill and liked it a good deal. A really good lyricist, and music from the prog side of the 70s that doesn't sound dated, that does not sound self-indulgent but is often extraordinary. After this I listened to Clameur for the first time in many months, and felt quite proud of it, and I texted Matt to let him know. I have an unfortunate tendency that once I have done something, I simply think it's not good enough and move on. It did me good to actually hear what Matt and I had achieved, and be glad and proud about it. And this something of a super Friday, as I am not working next week, and it has coincided with the big turning point financial turning point too. A pleasant enough day, working on parasites again and generally keeping out of trouble. So happy to be home tonight, went straight to the Shahi where I met Lorraine and Jess and Andrew...

Was on the Alison Ferns show for Valentine's day on BBC Sussex and Surrey. My wee bit starts at 36 minutes.

Matt and Pete's Big Night Out So the day of the Pollard & Kenny Clameur launch. Betty back this morning full of pep, armed with gifts of an unusual beer, and for me a large letter P made of chocolate from her trip to the low countries. After breakfast, Betty and I popped around to Masquerade where I hired a smart grey jacket with tails (although Betty and I assessed several others including gold and red sequined affairs. I was rather drawn to these until I looked at Betty's face). A little later Lorraine and I drove off to collect Mum from the station. Mason still getting over his chesty cough and it was thought best not to brave the ice and long journey. The next few hours given over to preparation, shoe cleaning, shirt ironing, a strategic nap and so on. Off then to the Unitarian Church and rehearsals began. Thank God we had lots of people to help us. Lorraine and as usual helping everything happen. She is so unbelievably supportive of me, it makes me feel very lucky. Bet...

Dreams and distant genes Woke up after an incredibly complex dream at around five thirty with the detailed basis for a completely new story in my head. Had to crawl out of bed to write it all down before it melted back into the ether. Lorraine working from home today, and it was nice to sit side by side up in the study. I had some agency work this morning, which I biffed through and then spent much of the day getting in touch with some old pals, including Michael Stone Richards who now is in Detriot and a Professor to boot. Really nice and encouraging note from Richard in Guernsey about Clameur . Sent off some more CDs and went briefly shopping in the freezing weather. Lorraine who is feeling a little better, cooked a delicious onion based curry tonight, which involved complex spice mixes and purees of garlic onion and ginger, and cooking onions in different ways. We snapped happily into this, and watched the recent movie Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, which was well acted, atmospheric but...

What a difference a day makes Rain gouting from the sky I, however, was cheery. In the morning a thundering on the door heralded the arrival of a pallet of CDs. And not just any CD, my CD. They look as well as I could have hoped, and sound great. Matt called around in the afternoon for coffee and to take some. Both feeling quietly proud. Also I have been in touch with The Sussex Beacon an aids care charity, who will be doing a bucket shake at our concert. It is good to have an ethical dimension to things, and The Beacon took good care of my old pal Tim Gallagher in his last year or so, and I have never forgotten this. Lorraine home early, and after I had cooked, she drove me off to listen to the choir rehearsing at Matt's, and Lorraine popped in to see Rosie. There were a couple of new faces including a promising Polish singer called Peter, and Adam Swayne who fancied helping and singing. Adam, Matt and I went off to meet Wayne at The Brunswick where there was their regular Jazz...

Bears and cats Felt nervy this morning. I woke from a dream about being in a bleak land of huge clawing bears. Signed off the artwork for 'Clameur' and signed a confidentiality agreement for the new people I may be working with, plus attended to several less glamorous chores. Took myself to the gym, which helped a great deal. L and I have taken to putting Basil outside to lose some weight as it is too fat for the catflap. In reality she sits outside the door peering in pleadingly. I popped around the corner to take some clothes to be recycled this afternoon and left a torn paper bag behind me. When I returned home I picked the bag up to throw it away to find that Basil who had stolen back in as I opened the door to leave had thoughtfully urinated in it. I slung her outside in punishment, but after mopping cat wee up, ten minutes later our neighbour Mark, who has our keys, let it back in thinking I was out. It was giving a convincing portrayal of starving and homeless. Home and ...

Cover Apart from lurking with Lorraine by the TV and eating food I'd concocted, spent the day manacled to desk till midnight laying out our CD cover and 8 page booklet into templates ready for production. Little time for anything else. Happy with my results though. Sonia around cleaning as I worked.

Skateboard terrain The R4 Today programme talking about the drought we can expect next year due to low autumn rainfall. As usual this sort of talk cue for the skies to empty themselves of huge amounts of rain all day and night. I became a Landlord today, so phone calls this morning to utilities. Once this landownder business done, off to collect the master CD of Pollard & Kenny's Clameur from Simon. Paused en route to buy a pie from Bangers Home Made Pies, a shop I happened on whose only business seemed to the manufacture of rather nice pies. I scored a small chicken and mushroom pie and was well pleased. A bit early for Simon, I tarried in the Levels park, taking snaps of the rainsoaked and strangely melancholy skateboard park, made more so by a small tree that had been turned into a shrine for a young woman. Once the CD obtained from Simon I mooched back into the city centre talking to Matt about the CD. Then off to get my hair cut in the Laines by a bald barber who did a g...

Minotaur Here is the little video I was putting together for what is probably the maddest track on Matt and my forthcoming CD... Filmed with me skimming walls to odd looks in Brighton.

Breaking cover Lorraine pulling the side panel from the bath and deconstructing her bathroom to look for the source of a blockage in the pipe early this morning. After a spell of this sort of thing, Lorraine off to get her back cracked by a chiropractor, while I repaired home. Listened to the soundfile of The Rainbow Chorus recording of Matt and my song Found . Matt added an organ part to the opening which was splendid. Then Matt arrived in person, and once he'd done stroking Calliope, we spent some time in the ghastly business of looking at photos of ourselves, and okaying the look and feel of our CD which I'd been designing. Both very happy with the direction it is all taking. From there, the three of us went around the corner to the Yeoman for three of their devastating Yeoman burgers. I blame Mason, who started all this Yeoman burger business. A quiet evening in. Below I took an image of a cactus flower in Kew Gardens the other week. I have obviously cropped it, reversed ...

Recording day The morning of the day I became a recording artist sucked: beautiful sun triggering the release of pollen and other miscreant spores into the air making my throat sore. Then I felt like weeping with frustration as my computer, with its spanking new hard drive, failed again. Managed to start it and restore it to an earlier version (i.e. sometime yesterday) and it has been working since then, but I trust it as far as I can throw it, which will next be out of the window. To St Michael and All Angels for 3:30. Dr Simon Scardanelli our engineer already busy with a nest of wires and microphones. Matt seething as the priests told him that we would have to interrupt our recording for them to say prayers, something which nobody had mentioned until we arrived. This being England, we all had a cup of tea first, and there were quite a few nerves flying around, although there was a very supportive atmosphere. Simon really nice guy, who was veru reassuring to me. Adam and Tom assemblin...

Hard drive An eye test first thing this morning. Nice optometrist who said he started off as an electrical engineer, but married to an optician who, he noticed, was earning a lot more money than him. No appreciable deterioration in my mince pies and their insides good too which, having written at length about eye injections, is pleasing. Dell helpline: call started at 11am and after four phone calls, the problem was diagnosed as being as a doomed hard drive at 4:15pm. Felt like Dante in Purgatorio with an Indian call centre Virgil. Cheekily having diagnosed a hardware problem, they tried to sell me software support for a year. An engineer will come to replace my hard drive, which of course means I will have to set up my computer from scratch again. The problem also prevents an automatic backup so I am forced to laboriously copy everything across to my external hard drive, file by file, email by email. Gah. While I sighed in my study, there was a huge end-of-the-world thunderstorm over ...

Music to my ears Working on the haemophilia newsletter this morning. Later, while in the gym, I had an interesting, and musical, thought about the new piece while on the Hulk legs machine. Meanwhile news from Guernsey: Jane and Richard's wedding certificate has gone astray in the Guernsey Post which, quite rightly, Jane is less than impressed with. Off in the evening to Matt's place in Hove. Helped him move furniture around to make room for the choir. Adam arrived with his marimba too, which looks like a nest of giant's pan pipes and wheely struts before assembly. Once the music started I felt oddly like Inspector Morse, an onlooker in the corner of Matt's high-ceilinged room with a lump in my throat as I heard the choir rehearsing Clameur . Something thrilling about hearing nine people sing your words, and feeling rather awed by the quality of Matt's music. This is hugely beautiful piece. I am so lucky to be able to work with him. Once rehearsal was over, I suspect...

Back in the band A wad of cotton wool in my head instead of a brain today, perhaps due to a slight cold. Worked on amends to the atrial fibrillation work, and a bit of time on poems, which are going amazingly well at the moment. In the afternoon going through the score of This concert will fall in love with you and feeling rather nervous about the rehearsal due to the aforementioned brain. Off to Sussex University rehearsal room to meet Matt. Was introduced to Cem Muharrem, who has replaced Ellie as she wasn't available for the recordings, but Cem seems to be an amazing violinist. Adam, Tom and Fingers Capra there too. Felt happy to be back with the gang. A little insight into the life of a musician, and the feelings of camaraderie that can go with it. For me all this is like being in a band for a few weeks, which as so much of my time is spent alone is rather nice. Rather sadly it makes me think of Yes, my favourite rock group, and helps me understand the stuff I've read abo...