With the English Premier League title now decided in the most dramatic of fashions, I think I can now reflect on two aspects that were most pleasing. As a neutral, the final day was a most exciting listen as I prepared for the week ahead with the radio blaring and the broadcasters jumping from ground to ground as the destiny of the title seemed to be going to Old Trafford until the very last minute of the the very last day of the season. This late, unexpected drama got me thinking. For some time now, and in direct correlation with the increasing popularity of the camera phone, there is a tendency not to live in the moment and instead hold a camera and film things in the hope that a “moment” might happen and will be caught on camera for prosperity . Due to the fact that the drama played out at Manchester City yesterday was so last minute and unprecedented, I imagine that very few in the stadium were sitting with their camera phones rolling in expectation that City would score two injury time goals and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. As a consequence, everyone was watching events develop with their own eyes and emotions as opposed to through a viewfinder. This is refreshing as it seems that at football matches these days the minute a corner is awarded, 2-3 thousand people seem to see this as a cue to get their camera out and take a picture of a player taking a corner which statistically, has a 1 in 100 chance of leading to a goal. It’s not dissimilar at gigs when it appears that some attending are only there in order to rush home after the encore and upload their footage on to youtube. I can’t criticise that too much, I’ve watched a lot of gig footage on youtube but I shall leave my “Top Ten Youtube Gig Moments” for another day. The other aspect I found most enjoyable was a the commentary of City’s winning goal by an Argentinean commentator who after the obligatory “Gooooooooooaaaal” decided that the addition of an Aguero song was a good idea, I cannot disagree. Good on that man. You can enjoy it below.

As I always say, it’s down to the individual how they prepare for a live show but if it’s possible to find a strange looking green couch to sit upon and compose ones thoughts it has to be viewed as a bonus. Thankfully, this was the case pre-show at the new BBC HQ in Manchester ahead of Saturdays Fighting Talk. Alas, my fellow panelists Kevin Bridges, Andy Dunn and Danny Mills did not take immediate advantage of the strange yet comfortable seating contraption. Regardless, it was a great show and if you fancy, can be listened to here.

The current series of Mad Men recently saw Don Draper go to a Rolling Stones concert in an attempt to sign up the band for a Heinz commercial, the idea being the band would re-record Time Is On My Side as Heinz Is On My Side and no doubt sell a lot of beans. Regardless of the fact that in real life the band never did record such a ditty, the concert in Forest Hills, Queens, did take place at the time of the latest series of Mad Men being set. Brilliantly, there are some photos of the show comprising the band playing, girls screaming and police no doubt wondering why this is all happening on their watch. The photos can be seen here courtesy of The Gothamist. This would have been around the time of the album Aftermath, when Brian Jones was playing a multitude of instruments on stage and in studio, Altamont was three years away and the prospect of The Rolling Stones’ music being used in advertising campaigns for amongst others Bleu De Chanel and Microsoft still some way off.

Image – The Gothamist

Here it is, the new Beck track Looking For A Sign which features in the new motion picture of the same name. My favourite Beck album is Sea Change and this is definitely in the same mould which makes me happy. I would be happier still if he released a new album soon but this will do for the moment, quite marvelous.

I had the pleasure of seeing Serious Drugs, the new feature documentary on The BMX Bandits as part of the London Pop Festival last week. The band celebrated their 25th anniversary last year and although there have been several line-up changes in that time, the one mainstay is chief Bandit Duglas T Stewart. I have been friends with Duglas for many years and I’m glad to report he and his vast musical output comes over very well and is entertaining and inspiring in equal measure. One man who was certainly inspired by Duglas’s music was the films director Jim Burns who had never made a feature before this. In the accompanying q&a, he detailed how the BMX Bandits music and in particular the album My Chain helped him deal with the depression he has suffered from over the years and not only did the music afford him solace but the idea of making a film about the band gave him a great artistic undertaking. This would ultimately produce a touching and insightful film. I spoke to Jim afterwards and it was inspiring to hear how he got hold of a camera, a microphone and set out to document a bands music which had changed his life even though he had no previous experience in that field and all the time had to hold down his day job. The true spirit of independent filmmaking is alive and well as long as there are people like Jim around. Here is the trailer -