After I uploaded last week’s blog I didn’t think this week’s would be very interesting. I thought it would just be hey I learnt how to use the washing machine in my building (which I have) and lectures are fun. But no, there is actually some stuff I want to talk about; it’s actually been a fairly eventful week.
First things first, I am fairly certain that I mentioned in a previous post about “an incident with a bassist” and some people knew about it and others asked about it…I just want to quickly clear-up that said bassist apologised so everyone can move on. Chill and civil. That is what we’ve agreed to.
Moving on quickly there is actually some music news I want to mention.
Calva Louise who I have mentioned on my blog before have released another absolute tune today! “I Heard A Cry” is surprisingly upbeat and I could imagine myself jumping around to it at a gig. I need to go to one of their gigs soon.
A local band to me, Free Galaxy, have released their third single “Evolution” which not only has some awesome artwork but sounds great. It has a fantastic beat and brilliant vocals. I am very pleased to see this band doing so well. They work hard and very much deserve it.
In the week that Stilia announced that they will be no more due to being absolutely screwed over by their management it was great to see that it isn’t all bad news in the music industry. Sam Johnson signed a record deal with Universal Germany which I am super happy about. He’s a very talented dude and a lovely guy. I am very excited about what he will be releasing in the future.
This week – as specified in the title of this post – I went to my fourth Spring King gig! This has to be the best one I think. The set list was banging and the atmosphere was incredible. I am not one for mosh pits for many reasons, one being that I am a huge height disadvantage being very short so I hung just behind it with my brother. This meant I couldn’t really see but it didn’t matter because I was captivated by the music through and through.
I am going to make a bold statement and say despite how much I love their recorded material I do think some of their tracks sound much better live. I would honestly love for their to be a recorded live version of “It’s So Dark”. That would be amazing!
Afterwards, I got to see Tarek again (singer/drummer/songwriter/producer/legend) which was great. He’s a proper dude. I thoroughly enjoyed hanging with my brother that night because I don’t think we’ve ever been to a gig together before. We’ve decided that it is something we will have to do more often…I will drag him to a Kaiser Chiefs gig at some point I’m sure.
I started lectures this week! I have a lot of them plus lab sessions and tutorials so it has been a bit of a shock to the system not going to lie. There is a lot going on with all sorts of different modules being taught and countless different lecturers so I think it is going to take some time to get used to it all. It has also been quite overwhelming.
Most evenings by about six o’clock I have a headache and been wanting to go to bed which can be difficult when flatmates have friends around drinking. It has just taken everything out of me – even cooking dinner some nights have been hard.
I think I have been finding it harder than some people because I took a year out so it is taking a while for me to remember how to study and how to sit a be taught for hours on end.
I know things will get easier but right now I just want to sleep all of the time.
But I have finished my assignments for this week! So I can now focus on the more living activities like doing my washing and food shop which I am strangely enjoying. Turns out independence suits me!
I went to the first LGBT+ Society meeting this week as a not-really-out-and-proud pansexual it was actually sort of difficult. A lot of people already knew each other so I ironically felt like a bit of an outcast but I’m not going to rule it out completely. I just might not actively participate.
Afterwards, I was planning on heading to the cricket to watch the final domestic game of the season but Warwickshire wrapped it up very quickly and beat Kent to become Division Two champions. I am very pleased but gutted that I didn’t catch any of the final game. I will do a full write-up about their County Championship season at some point in the next few days like I did about their One Day and T20 campaigns.
Something that may have caught your eye in the title of this post is my bold claim that my university campus is unsafe. You may think that I’m being melodramatic but last night was nuts.
In the past two weeks of me living here, there have been countless muggings and assaults/stabbings and a lot of dodgy happenings. Fake taxi companies trying to groom girls and drug dealers becoming unhappy that you don’t want their drugs but last night was a new low.
I was out, at Spring King’s gig when I received a few messages from my flatmate telling me to read the accommodation group chat and to get an Uber home instead of walking. This is because in the space of about half an hour just after 9pm one individual was mugged by a group of six, another individual was assaulted by a pair and dragged towards a vehicle before they broke free and another individual was threatening people with a knife. One of the societies locked themselves in the Student Union building to stay safe.
This is crazy! I know Birmingham is not the safest place especially at night but to have all this stuff happen on campus around the accommodation blocks when we were told that there is good security is terrible. It actually makes me anxious about going out by myself.
Tomorrow I am going home for the day and will get back about 9pm so I am dreading walking from the station to my flat when it isn’t even that late at night. Eugh.
So who knows? This could be my last blog post! Okay…I know…dramatic… but you never know.
Picks of the Week:
Song – I Heard A Cry by Calva Louise Listen.
Album – Tell Me If You Like To by Spring King Listen.
Gig – Oxjam Brum (Digbeth, Birmingham 13/10) Tickets.
Music, Drums and Me 