I'm about to defect to Wordpress

Exodus II from the photostream of _mpd_ . Reused under a Creative Commons licence

Sorry Blogger, even after you released "New Blogger" and I created a new version of Platform 3...the blog on there and played around with it, I am still going to jump ship.

As I mentioned in a previous post I've had my eye on Wordpress for a while...using one for work purposes. I have also set one up for another purpose and have found that I like it more than Blogger.

Here is what Platform3...the blog looks like after being exported onto Wordpress.com. I think it looks better and it also has functionality that in my opinion is more advanced in many ways than Blogger. What do you think???

Now if only I can get Bruce, my hosting provider to install Wordpress on the server at Squatbetty.org so I can have better customisation...I have grown to like Google Analytics. I will have to buttonhole him at his wedding this coming Thursday and get him to install it when the dust dies down.

Bicycles of Oxford - Ghost bike

Bicycles of Oxford - Memorial. Posted to Flickr by Platform 3. Originally posted by Brown Rice and reposted with permission.

Here is a photo of the "ghost bike" that is parked at the corner of Broad St and Parks Rd that is a memorial for Tsz Fok who was killed on this spot by a left turning garbage truck in April, as I mentioned here. RIP.

I think the bike was prepared by the Oxford Cycle Workshop, a very worthy bike shop. Their myspace page is here.

R.I.P The Zodiac

"Where it all happens apparently. Unless you're a Uni student straight out of public school in which case it's where all the scary drug pushers, muggers and lefty bohemians hang out. A myth we're more than happy to perpetuate to keep bastards out." Nightshift Magazine as quoted in Wikipedia

Even as I type, The Zodiac on Cowley Road, here in Oxford is in the throes of its final night. I've mentioned this band/club venue several times on this blog and I've spent many other nights there that have gone un-catalogued.

The venue is going to undergo a 4 month, £2 million (or 3 million depending on which website you read) refurbishment and will reopen as the Carling™ Academy Oxford. The Zodiac name will survive as the name of the middle-sized of the three new venues within the new Entertainment Palace.

Those of you unfamiliar with The Zodiac may experience a glimmer of recognition if I say that the video for Radiohead's song, Creep from their 1993 album Pablo Honey was shot on the stage of the Zodiac (although I'm informed that back then The Zodiac was called The Venue). In fact, it's the very stage that you can see in the vid I took last Friday of The Destroyers, as blogged in the post directly before this one. Anyhow, there's more history on Wikipedia, if you care.

Once again, the magic of YouTube means that you can see Radiohead's Zodiac video below...

I'm reasonably ambivalent about the Zodiac sell-out. The venue will benefit from a good refit, hopefully with an improved PA (although the current one isn't too bad) and facilities. There will be an extra space (bar) to add to the 2 existing performance spaces and there may well be a boost in the touring bands who play in Oxford.

On the other hand, I hope that this doesn't mean that smaller bands such as my friends Stornoway and acts such as Sol Samba now won't get a look-in. I also hope that the new management won't suddenly feel the need to introduce character killing "security" measures (such as bag searches for "contraband" water bottles) in order to accelerate the Return on their £2m Investment by "protecting" sales of Carling. Likewise, I hope the ticket prices don't go up too much either.

That may be wishful thinking but we will see. The next time I'm there is likely to be The Decemberists in October. I'll let you know what it's like.

Cubalkan Bateria Sound Clash

Samba Blue Galaxy uploaded to Flickr by Platform 3

Went to The Zodiac on Friday night to catch up with the latest Sol Samba grooves. Unfortunately arrived just after the opening act Puño de Dios had finished. By all accounts it was my loss as the people I spoke to were unanimous in their praise for their set.

A few years back, I attended a Sol Samba beginner's course which was educational. I also cut the rug a few times in the samba dance class. Also, Kate played in the band for some time, so it was high fives all round with several current Sol Samba members as well as a whole heap of erstwhile Sol sambistas who were in the audience.

I last saw them perform at the Cowley Road Carnival in July 2006 but I missed the last Sol Samba gig at the Zodiac last June. They usually get a good crowd at their Zodiac shows who never fail to bring their dancing shoes. I was impressed by the tunes that Sol Samba played which were new to me and had some neat additions such as some vocals and some new/different grooves.

Next up were the headliners, The Destroyers, a bonkers, 15 member, Eastern Europe inspired collective who put on an enjoyable show replete with many funny hats. They are playing near you (if you live in England, Wales or Nth Ireland anyway). I captured part of a number which featured a Lynch-esque fellow adding vocals which you can see in the embedded video below. Da-di-da-da-da...HEY!

Lights in the Dusk (Laitakaupungin valot)

I went and saw Aki Kaurismäki's latest film last night. Here's a few words about it:

droll, deadpan, Helsinki, loser, security guard, femme fatale, loneliness, jewel theft, framed, jail, despair, hope (a little bit of).

More info
Quicktime trailer. Here's a Windows Media version

That is all.

Fakenger/Posenger/Exenger

Hi I'm Ed the exenger — Photo by the inimitable Andy White @ fyxomatosis

"From short pants to cool hats and bags big enough to hold a filing cabinet, bike messengers everywhere have a unique style. Riding a bike through the crowded streets of any city requires a wardrobe of practicality and freshness that clearly distinguishes couriers from geared-up roadies." pedalpushersonline.com

My recent post about the recent Oxford HGV death that" linked to Moving Target "the world's most useless messenger zine" gained me a link in its sidebar (thanks Bill), making my pageviews spike upwards dramatically. This made me pretty happy as Moving Target is a site that I regularly read.

Now my post has fallen off the end of Moving Target's homepage linkroll and my millions of page views are now back down to the usual tens of thousands only. So, I thought I'd attempt some blatant traffic driving and discuss the rising popularity of the fixed gear bicycle and the concept of the fakenger/posenger/ex-enger...inspired by the fact that the fakenger article on MT is its most popular apparently, so I thought I'd sell out. I can't wait to see my Google Analytics stats go psycho!...or not.

Here is the Urban Dictionary's definition of fakenger and posenger.

I admit it, I am a posenger (exenger). I once worked as a courier and it was one of the best times of my life. However, I haven't delivered a package since 2001 but I'm dressing more like a "courier" now than I did when I was actually picking and dropping. Also, in 2003 almost two years after hanging up my pager, I obtained a fixed wheel/gear bike which is in direct contrast to the courier ghetto bike that I used when I was on the job.

I thought I'd attempt to coin my own term for it though, exenger... ex-Messenger...to try and differentiate myself from the hipster masses. Whaddaya reckon?

Associated with the fakenger/posenger meme is the rise of the fixed gear (or fixed wheel) bicycle AKA fixie. I've noticed quite a lot of internet talk about the fixed gear bike trend/craze/fad. I've also noticed that there are definitely quite a few more fixed gear riders on the streets of Oxford than in previous years, which I guess isn't surprising given the coverage in publications such as Cycling Plus and also the influx of students from the USA now that term has started and the weather has improved.

I did a search on Technorati the other day and discovered that there was a big spread in the New York times last Sunday about fixed gear/wheel bicycles. Does this mean, as Iconic's blog suggests that riding a bike with a fixed wheel has jumped the shark?

Couriers and the accoutrements of the profession have long percolated into popular culture viz. Crumpler (and other brand) courier bags becoming ubiquitous, Kevin Bacon's Quicksilver movie and numerous articles about "urban assault riders" with "kamikaze, counter-culture" lifestyles being examples.

So, couriers have long had cred and cachet but now it's become a damn sight easier to obtain the paraphernalia. Anyone can walk into their local Specialized dealer and buy a Langster fixie for £399/$600 or a Kona Paddy Wagon (£450) to get that special Zen, courier feeling...notwithstanding the fact that a lot of couriers don't even ride fixed bikes. There are also an abundance of courier (shoulder) bag makers on the Web that will ship their wares to any location to help you complete "the look"

My take (probably not surprisingly) on it is that I think it's fine to mimic the courier thing...one less car and all that. However, in a bid to big myself up...with only a little digging it's possible to discern the exengers (like me) from the fakengers who have never been a working courier. In your face fakengers...vive l'exengeur!!

Despite all that, the messenger "look" is a darn sight better than golf chic being the new punk, in my opinion...and as Iconic says:

"if, in a year, fixies are no longer hip...well, enjoy the great prices on cool bike gear."

I might have more to say on the matter later but that's all for now. Time to ski Mt Mattress.