Who Watches the Watchmen?

Well, I will, for a start.

Nooooooooooooo!

I just found out that Billy Bragg played at Duke last night. He was practically on our doorstep and we didn't even know! I took a look at his website and it turns out that he's not back in the USA until March 2009. Even then, he's only going to Austin, Texas and New York City. Is there no justice in the world?

You can read about the gig on Akma's blog.

My attempt to cheer myself up (or does it just rub salt into the wound?) is to incessantly YouTube some of my favourites. Mark, unfortunately, is inconsolable. The first clip is one of Kate Nash singing Foundations that segues into her singing A New England with Billy Bragg. The second clip is an old video of Sexuality that includes Johnny Marr, Phill Jupitus and the late, great, Kirsty MacColl (who was excellent when I saw her live at The Junction in Cambridge (UK) all those years ago).

Miley Cyrus in Paris

My sister, her family and my mother went to Paris for a short break earlier this week. My niece said that she saw Miley Cyrus on the Eurostar platform as they got off the train in Paris and were walking just behind her.

She said:

She walked along our platform with us when we got off the Eurostar in Paris. And no one noticed it was her, except me... And I kept staring cus I wasn't sure, so she smiled to me. And then when we got off the platform and all the paparazzi were taking photos and whatnot and my ma was stood RIGHT behind her and just went "Omg, who the hell IS she?!" Ahahahhaha. She just wanted to get out and got proppa annoyed. I was like "Ma, shes famous".

Emily did a quick bit of googling and found a good picture. My mum is the woman with the red scarf. You can also see a bit of my nephew (mainly his right ear). She also found a good video. If you know my mum, my sister or any of my sister's family, watch the video and see if you can spot them (it's quite easy because they are standing right behind Ms Cyrus).

And to think that we forked out $150 each to go and see her in Greensboro!

Killer Roadtrip

The Killers are undertaking a US tour. They are coming to all the states that border NC, but are not coming to NC! The tour includes Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (about 3.5 hrs drive); Fairfax, Virginia (about 4.5 hrs drive); Atlanta, Georgia (6.5 hrs drive); Nashville, Tennessee (8.5 hrs drive). The problem is that the Myrtle Beach gig is on a Wednesday night, the Fairfax gig is on a Thursday night and the Atlanta gig is on a Friday night (and too far to drive to after school finishes).

This has narrowed down our options somewhat, so we bought our tickets for the Nashville venue. Even though it's the farthest away, it is on a Saturday night.

So here's the plan -- Emily and Lauren finish school at 3pm on Friday. We jump in the car and drive about 5.5 hours to a motel in the Smoky Mountains (about an hour past Asheville). On the Saturday, we drive through the Smoky Mountains National Park to Tennessee (something I'd like to do anyway), then on to Nashville. We see The Killers at the Grand Ole Opry, stay the night in a motel in Nashville, then head home on the Sunday.

It's a long way to drive, and a drive that we wouldn't have to do if The Killers had just thought to schedule their Myrtle Beach gig for the Saturday, but I think that the drive will be beautifully scenic and that it will be well worth it to see The Killers live.

We don't yet have their latest album, so we'll have to buy this and get up to speed before the gig. In the meantime, here's a few YouTubes to help us get excited: