Ryan Calder Band

What were you doing? What were you wearing? What music were you listening to? Who were you hanging out with? What were you dreaming about for the future? (more…)

It’s time for new songs, don’t you think? Well, I do. The whole band is getting involved in the songwriting process this time around, and the ideas coming out – even in the initial stages – already have me quite excited. (more…)

Being cynical is not a bad thing necessarily… you could argue that there’s a lot that can be gleaned from a critical observation of the world and the status quo in looking to the future. Take, for example, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. One argument is that his cynical view of social structures spawned the most influencial social-networking website we’ve ever known.

How about Sir Bob Geldof? One of the most cynical artists around, but also one of the most influential – Live 8 founder, humanitarian pioneer and all-round roughian. (more…)

“Abandon” is one of those terms we use to describe the behaviour of children. They’re that way inclined: uninhibited and prone to instinctual response. The highs and lows of their experiences from one moment to the next are exactly that on an emotional level – exceptionally high and desperately low. (more…)

As you know, I am intrigued by people’s stories. I much prefer autobiographies over anything else. There’s nothing more interesting, I find, than hearing someone’s story and their own personal journey: what they’ve been through and what are the things that have made them who they are.

And if our drummer Rudi had a biography, it would be well worth the read. (more…)

They say that Chuck Norris grew a beard at the age of 18. Seconds.

Now, I’m not here to diss Chuck (we all know what kind of suicidal mission that would be)… but I just can’t help wondering whether Mr Norris ever considered world domination? (more…)

We often get asked at gigs (mostly by white people) where Roberto comes from. The answers are wide and varied.

Rob, Berto, brother, bass ou, bruin ou… whatever you want to call him, seems to have mystifying power over our audiences. (more…)

The Future Music Forum, which I attended in September in Barcelona, is the brainchild of events co-ordinator Niall Doorley. Niall is an energetic personality, and has created a important space for the music industry to come together and share ideas. (more…)

One of the wonders of the modern world is that we’re all so connected, and yet also not. To illustrate the point: here I sit, typing this blog post on my Blackberry, in a cafe full of people. Go on. Judge me. But this is the world we live in. (more…)

Barcelona is intoxicating. Several times I have come close to getting a tattoo, and every night I have ended up in some obscure little carrer (street) after mixing it up with the locals. I have butchered their Catalan (the native language) to death, but I am obviously enough entertainment value to warrant the amount of free drinks I have garnered from them. (more…)