I can now die a happy man having successfully watched Rage against the Machine play live in concert twice. Round two was with my mates Shannon and Rob at the Melbourne Big day Out yesterday. This time we waited eight and a half long hours in the D (inner circle thingee) in the blistering hot sun, listening to average band after average band (apart from The Arcade Fire, Midnight Juggernauts, and perhaps Hiltop Hoods). It just served to highlight how incredible this band is. Im not one for throwing my undies at bands but for a whole bunch of reasons this band float my boat and bring a big smile to the dial. It was another huge set, with a bunch of differences to the Auckland set list that made the whole thing worth the mission.
Had a recovery day today, and going to see a bit of Melbourne tomorrow before shooting home on Thursday to get back into it...
Being mulling over a whole bunch of things recently, but have being frustrated by the lack of time to process them properly. Hoping to hit some kind of groove for the year at some point shortly.

In other news, my search for a flatmate is over, a lot less stress with that development, and im totally loving in the middle of town. Wellington flippin rocks, and living in the heart of the city is sweet. No more nasty commutes, and no more hassles with parking. I can almost hear the pressure valve going off. My plan is to get a long board and skate to work, my plan is to eat healthy, my plan is to finally act like a christian, my plan is to work out and loose my puku, my plan is to become completely sorted on every level, my plan is to master the art of administration, my plan is to fly to the moon...

Ok, so my apologies for the lack of activity on the blog, I got back from Auckland, had a wedding on Sunday, moved into my flat on Monday, had a full day at work yesterday, as a little known band says "the rage is relentless"

Segue to my review of the Rage against the Machine gig on Friday. Without a doubt this gig eclipses any other gig that I have ever being to. After waiting six hours in the D (the barricaded fence around the mainstages), and enjoying performances by the Shihad and The Arcade Fire, tolerating performances by Pluto, Bjork, and a few other Aussie bands, the moment came when the boys came on stage. I was surrounded by great friends, I was meters away from the stage and then...



I am still in a state of bliss. Jump on YouTube and have a look at some of the clips from the Auckland BDO, I would post more, but the language of some of the songs would probably get me in trouble (if you are not easily offended check out this clip to see how hard the crowd was going from the front to the back - warning though - offensive language). It was their first show outside of America since they got back together, and they cranked out an awesome setlist, including Tire Me, Bulls on Parade, Vietnow, Township Rebellion, Wake Up etc. They poured huge amounts of passion into the gig, and their antics on stage were mindblowing.

For a certain generation the reformation of Californian rock militants and past BDO headliners Rage Against the Machine is a certain generation's equivalent to the Led Zep reunion. After a delay to kick off, they got a heroes' welcome - and a giant crowd crush - and churned through the rap-rock anthems as if there was no yesterday. NZ herald review

I have waited all my life to see these guys - they are by far my favourite band. And the show surpassed my very high expectations, it was an awesome show. In between every song I would get all excited again waiting for them to start another riff that would send me back out into orbit. I'm off to Melbourne on Sunday to see them in action again. I'm broke as a joke, but this is one of those things that just has to be done.

Im still very happy : )

Today is the day I have being waiting for since I can remember. In just a few hours I will be watching my favourite band of all time, rage against the machine, play live at the big day out.
I'm uber stressed about my new flat, we urgently need another flat mate, and start paying rent on monday. Its a huge financial commitment that I can only just manage. On top of that there is just a huge amount of work that is mounting up for church - mainly to get everthing sorted for the first part of this year.

But I'm trying to put that all to one side an enjoy today for what it is. I think there is something of an art to putting aside a bunch of stress and concerns and allowing yourself to enjoy good friends and sweet tunes. Its an art I would like to try and get better at. Its scary how much life can get robbed stressing out about things.

Anyway, its going to be a great day...
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Ive being having a few yarns with mates about all time albums recently. The sort of album that is just great from the first song to the last song. The sort of album that when you discover a friend hasnt heard it, its almost an insult, and you are tempted to march them to a store to buy it straight away because the thought of not having it in your life is simply tragic. Im talking about albums that you just gotta have on your ipod, albums that you should go and download from itunes without hesitation. And so Ive being collating a list in my head with this blog in mind. My motivation is partly pure - there may be albums in my list that you havent heard and it would be very cool to introduce you to them. But its mainly selfish - I want to hear about new albums I should have on my ipod. And im not talking about albums like ac/dcs back in black, or pink floyds "the wall", or sergant peppers. Im talking about those sort of albums that may have flown under the radar a bit. For my friends reading this from overseas, there are a bunch of kiwi albums in the mix that are worth have a crack at.

So hear is my stab at this list, naturally its subject to my (very broad) tastes in music so if you don't like it... well... cry me a river : )

Ben Folds - Rockin the Suburbs (my hooks than a long line)
The Black Seeds - On the Sun (one of the phattest dub-reggae-funk albums around)
Breaks Co-Op - The Otherside (flippin good kiwi beach style mellow tunes)
Conray - mefalaslate (a relatively unknown kiwi - some cool electronica)
Dc Talk - Jesus Freak (i know, fillpin 90s boy, but damm its a great album and im surprised by how many haven't heard it)
Death Cab for Cutie - Plans (if you dont have this album on your ipod, I dont want to talk to you ever again)
Dire Straits - Love over Gold (mock on)
Eight - Moving (one of the best kiwi bands in recent years)
Eric Clapton - Unplugged
Fat Freddys Drop - Based on a true story (another classic kiwi album, hard to pin a genre on this)
Jet - Get Born (brilliant aussie rock)
John Mayer - Continuim (it took me a long time to get into Mayer, I thought he was a bit of a tool, but this album is awesome)
Mutemath - Mutemath (surprisingly, it only just makes it on, mainly because of how much I think of the live show when I listen to it. Bring on their next album)
P.O.D. - Satellite
The Phoenix Foundation - Pegasus (Another kiwi stunner, amazing album)
Radiohead - Ok Computer and In Rainbows (pink floyd of the 90s, and the new album is the best of the summer)
Rage against the Machine - every album (suprise suprise)
Salmonella Dub - Inside the dubplates (if you dont live in NZ, this is a pretty huge album well worth getting especially if you are into dub)
Story of the Year - Page Avenue (im not normally into this style, but this album is produced like nothing else I have heard, and im into the songs)
Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
Switchfoot - The Beautiful Letdown
Tool - Lateralus (the metal version of pink floyd)

So there we go, the list as it stands at the moment.

Im really really interested in hearing what your particular list would be, drop a comment or blog it and let me know. Hook a brother up!

Well the intention to post every day was wishful thinking! But the festival was an amazing week, it just got a little busy. Its taken a good couple of days to recover from the festival, ive done nothing but sleep and mooch around since Wednesday. Gone are the days of bouncing back from that sort of thing... sigh.
Anyway, im out of the cave. : )

There are a whole bunch of highlights from the week, having so many friends in one spot was very cool, and the guys that came for the event were amazing. Here are my old bible college flatmates who were at the event. Its bitter sweet having a whole bunch of mates that you can only spend a limited amount of time with due to the busyness of the event, but with whom you could spend weeks and weeks swapping yarns and still not be done!

One of the highlights would have to be the two afternoons that were spent in acts of service in the local community where we hold the festival. Below is the front page photo from the Manawatu Standard. Is what was deeply moving to drive around the different projects and see hundreds of young people serving this town. It was a picture of the kingdom breaking in.

I was chatting to Andy (our worship leader for the event) at the end of the festival, and he said "it feels like we have taken root". This festival, and perhaps our next festival are probably some of the most important in terms of sussing out whether we are on the right track or not. With numbers doubling this year, and a great atmosphere, clear values and vision, and a great team, there is much to be grateful for.
On a personal note, I came out of the week with a renewed self confidence. For whatever reason there had being a couple of weeks leading up to the event where I was on shaky ground. It was good to get over that stuff thanks to a couple of helpful conversations and some good times of reflection.
Im looking forward to the debrief stage, there are a lot of people that were at the event who have their heads screwed on, and I am sure there will be some very helpful observations made over the next couple of weeks.

Will post some photos once we get our mittens on them, and may add some more reflections... (no promises though!)

And now its time to gear up for 2008! Church kicks off in a week, it looks set to be a good year.

Thanks to all who came, those who served, and those who inspired! Im deeply grateful for the support of many friends from around the country. Chur!

I'm going to endevour to update my Blog throughout our second festival, mostly as a means of reflection as the festival is something of a marker for the year. Its great to have our second event underway, and we have learnt a bunch of lessons from last years event which has meant that this year it already feels like we are up a level.
That being said, I think what makes the soul survivor festival so special is that if "God doesn't walk into the room" to quote bono, the event is pretty flat. Mike Pilavachi spoke very well tonight, and it feels like we are off to a great start. Last year it certainly felt like a huge moment in my life is we kicked the thing off, this year its a place to reflect on the work that God has done in my life over the last year.
One of the bittersweet parts of this week is that the venue is filled with great people and amazing friends that I wish I could spend more time with. Its frustrating to see these guys at a rather busy time and then not see them for ages. It would be nice to push pause and enjoy un-rushed time swapping stories and ideas around. One day : )
Time for a few hours sleep!
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