Klak Tik

still alive

2011-12-13T19:57:00.002Z

So, it's nearly the end of the year. Man, that's flown by. Evidence is right here in front of me when I see how long it's been since I wrote here...

This is mostly to assure myself that I still exist.

For nearly a year I have been writing and recording the new album, starting with a month in the chapel in Wales, a time which is described in previous posts.

We are still not quite done recording, but damn my boots it if we won't be very soon. At this point I have written and recorded 25+ songs and it will soon be crunch time in terms of culling the litter. A painful process which I am kind of dreading. Kill your darlings, mr. Bonk. The really are darlings to me, a lot of the time.

Conversely, I honestly don't think I will ever stop writing songs, so fuck it, there's always another batch.

We have an awesome mixer Mark Bishop, who has already mixed a few tracks, and I can honestly say it is going to sound SWEEEEET.

We have played some memorable shows this year, perhaps most of all the Safety First Records launch gig at the Yard a month back.

In the first part of the new year we are playing some concerts at the Glad in Borough (a cosy old pub, utterly charming), so look out for those on Facebook. Seems to be the only place we announce our shows these days. If you don't use Facebook and still want to be kept in the loop let me know, then I shall write a physical letter to you!

I wish you merry end to the year 2011. Next year it's the olympics and I will be thinking of ways to get out of London, unless someone gives me a free ticket to the handball final.

love Soren

ps. We have finished our Safety First Records website, so go and check it out!

Even Stevens

2011-05-19T11:43:00.002+01:00

A couple of us went to see Sufjan Stevens here in London last week. We agreed that was one of the best gigs we have ever experienced. Wow man! Sufjan really is one of the most brilliant artists of our time. If you get the chance to see him in your city, don't be cheap, pay what you have to to experience this spectacle!

His latest cryptic album Age of Adz really made so much more sense when seen live. All in all just awe-inspiring for this humble klaktician.

Rigged

We are still playing monthly at London's Book club for the fully unplugged L&U nights. If you get the chance you should really come down and check it out. These are really the best nights of music I have come across in London the last decade (not just because we are playing there...). There's a feeling of community amongst the artists and the crowd seems to really be part of the night. Active listeners, engaged but quiet and respectful. I hope we can continue to do this monthly slot for a while. It seems our band has really found its feet down there. We are playing 'together' more than ever before. I think, as a spectator, you have a better chance of understanding what it is we are trying to do in this set up. And hell, hearing the violins and brass sans amp is pure joy! Biggest challenge is for yours truly to 'project' those songs enough.

Two Brothers' Blood

The album we recorded in Wales is still being tinkered with. In amongst our other worldly duties we have been making lots of additional parts and minor tweaks to the album. Boiling things down. Simmering new ideas. Raising difficult issues. I am guessing we will take another few months to finish up. But, it's going to be fucking amazing, I'm sure of it!

About Safety First

Our own Safety First Records has signed a few more acts now. Our latest addition is Furnace Flowers which moniker of the amazing folk singer Felix Holt. Felix and I are currently recording his first EP in my studio. Click here to listen to one of our first layouts.

Also, soon we will be releasing the new EP for the Polly Tones, which we can't wait to show the world.

But the next big thing that happens is the release of Jack Cheshire's already much acclaimed album 'Copenhagen'! Keep your eyes peeled for that one, it really is a spectacular album.

Klak Tik is a happy band and the summer is looming and there is an infinite amount of music yet to grow in this life. Some will bloom here and bounce around our 5 dimensions before leaping into your universe. Some will spring from you. Everything in between is fireworks.

Balder but bolder

2011-02-05T21:53:00.006Z

So, the fourth and last week has started here at the Chapel. It's been a beautiful experience so far. John and Matt left Friday morning and again it took me a while to get used to being alone. The days are lovely and bright, the nights kind of long, dark and lonely. Just me and way to much Famous Grouse.

The two weeks I had here with the boys proved mighty productive and it now looks likely I'll be coming home with a full album of songs. Bits and pieces still to do at home, but mostly it's all there. We recorded from early morning until late night every day they were here, pretty much, rarely interrupted by anything but walks, runs, whiskey drinking and other necessary evils.
The last time I wrote I really didn't have any idea what it is we were making, but slowly the music is starting to sink into me. I think we will be very pleased with what we have done. It's funny how something that comes from your own conscious can feel so alien at first, but it really does. I could compare it to having someone else's baby, but that would be a bit off, so forget I said that. Perhaps a bit more like pinching your brother's running shoes and then, almost annoyed, taking a few runs to get used to them. Yes, that actually happened. And I won't apologise, if you are reading this, it gave you are perfectly valid reason to buy a nice new pair, and to smack me a dead leg for that matter.
Stop ramblin'.

The Great Lode (Yeah, go on, say it out loud and look at your scrotum)
Last Monday we went to an abandoned copper mine. Once the largest in the world, no less.
Since reading Sons & Lovers I had wanted to write something about the toiling miners of the North (or indeed Wales...), so when Matt starting talking about what George Orwell once said on the matter we decided to write a song from the perspective of a miner.
John had read about this mine called Parys Mountain, about 20 miles from here, in a guide book only that day, so after inquiring we booked ourselves a tour of the mine with the intention of recording some of the vocals down there.Unexpectedly the tour was really quite exciting. A nice man by the name of Ronald (I know what you are thinking, thankfully it wasn't that Ronald) ventured 40 fathoms down into the mountain where we were taking through the blackest maze of muddy shafts imaginable. Almost a full three hours we were underground before an impressive cave with little orange lakes of copper coloured water opened up to the darting beams of our head lamps. Inexplicably this cave, though smaller than the others we had seen, had an otherworldly reverberation and Ron looked proud when he saw our excitement. With much care being taken to dodge the drips of ultra acidic water from the ceiling, we pulled out our recording equipment from the sodden overalls and managed to do a few vocal takes.
15 minutes later, when the most TV static like ceiling of stars conceivable spread out before us, and I had done a much needed wee, we felt very happy to be outside again.The results of the adventure, apart from the obvious adventure itself, will hopefully find their way onto the album, which by the way is still nameless.

I can smell the Smoke

I am so used to being here by now, the dreamy landscape and the sense of daylight, even now in winter, so I really feel a bit worried about London crashing into my bloodstream again. From what I could understand Matt and John felt more or less electrocuted by the hum buzz upon their return to the Smoke. I guess there is no avoiding it, if you want to be able to buy Grolsch at all hours of the day. And more importantly, there are people I am starting to miss terribly, who might forget about me if I don't soon reclaim my place in the other world.

Anyway, still lots of plucking to be done before such challenges.

Take care, you city gulls,

Soren (and Matt and John)

Penrhos Chapel #2 from Sorenious Bonk on Vimeo.

looking over my shoulder

2011-01-20T21:01:00.008Z

I finally managed to find internet, here at the Seacroft, a pub allegedly set nicely on the seafront. I wouldn't know, however, as the densest of clouds seems to have found rest right on top of our cosy shire.
I am enjoying a nicely poured Guinness (I am only 30 miles from Dublin) and a mushroom risotto which, apart from being the first meal not prepared by my own, or indeed Matt(atouilly)'s hands in a weeks time, isn't anything to get my stock boiling.

The first week of four here has nearly passed and I feel submerged in a handsome mix of cabin fever, awe, stillness, panic and inspiration. As expected it has been all too vivid being alone for this first week. In fact it's only about five days since Matt and John left, but it feels like a lot longer, ha. The silence is, as anticipated, deafening. Nothing but my ever progressing tinnitus, and the shrill screaming competition (think 'most annoying sound..' scene out of Dumb & Dumber) of my thoughts, which still feel as tangled as a my own good locks before they were mercilessly shed. The only time I hear my voice out loud is when I sing, or speak to someone on the phone. I feel like I have really become a singer. A singer - the creature that communicates only by song.

The music is... the music is... something is happening. Really not sure what I am doing to be honest. I had written about 25 songs, albeit sketchy, prior to arriving here and hoped it would be a breeze to knock something into shape, but predictably it is not that easy, Bonke.
I constantly go from being excited about something new, to shocked at how shit I am. From steam coming out of my ass to trouble keeping the steam up.
One thing is certain, the next Klak Tik album will not sound like the old one.

In between the musicating I am thoroughly and whole heartily enjoying this place. The amazing chapel, the fields, the coast, the baffling sea and the unbelievable privilege it is to spend a month in a place of such unfabricated beauty.

Miscellaneous notes:
Today I saw a peregrine. The other day I saw a massive school of porpoise passing the South Stack lighthouse (see picture). I also nearly ran over a rabbit on the way here. oops.
Below is a few pictures I took today, from morning to night. Notice how still the sea is. I literally don't think I have ever seen a sea that still. And it has lasted for 5 days! A storm is coming, uhh.
I had forgotten how much manure stinks. I don't really mind the smell so much, in theory, but the tractor was literally sprinkling shit right outside my window and I could almost taste the stuff in my mouth. Perhaps I will add to the liner notes a list of tracks recorded in that smell, but I am sure it will be obvious.

Oh and of course, below you will also find a little video diary from the first few days with the boys. All fun and games.

keep you posted.

A happy and deranged loner about to have a another pint before going back to work,
Sorenious

Penrhos Chapel #1 from Sorenious Bonk on Vimeo.

Penrhos

2011-01-05T10:20:00.001Z

Dear diarrhoea,
In a week and a bit Klak Tik are going to North Wales to record a bunch of new songs! I (Soren) am going for a whole month, whilst John and Matt will be there for two-three weeks. We have hired a converted chapel by the rough Irish sea. It looks beautiful.
We will be bringing my whole studio and setting it all up there. Hopefully the peace and quiet will bring a focus to the process which we could never achieve in London where I feel there is always a pint or a picture to go to.

We will try to keep up a little video diary, so watch out for that.

See you soon,
Soren

Two gigs with Chimes & Bells

2010-11-22T12:23:00.013Z

So we got back from Denmark yesterday in the afternoon. Having only slept for an hour or two the night before I am guessing none of us remember much from the flight...
We left London on Thursday and arrived at my brother and cousin's lovely flat in Christianshavn that night. Only by sacrificing their own beds did they manage to house all eight of us for the weekend. (We won't forget that!)
We managed a fairly quiet night, I think due to equal measures of the fatigue of travel and nerves for the gig.

The next morning the boys, fresh as daisies, popped down to the local posh bakery (Denmark's most expensive, apparently) to fetch lavish lattes for everyone and picked up a copy of Politiken (Denmark's best newspaper) which happened to feature a full-page spread about the band. A great piece, which did us all proud.
The weather was quite frankly shite, so most of the band spent the day inside, lounging, jamming, reading and generally keeping things fairly 'folk', before heading off for sound check in Lyngby. From then on things happened fast. By the time we had finished our fairly spartan sound check we just had time to neck a brewskies and scoff some rice and unidentifiable orange sauce and then we went on stage. The gig was cool, but by no means our best. There were about 100 people there, including my and Caecilie's (Chimes & Bells) parents. The worst part about it was that some uber drunk and, invariably, uber tall Dane was standing right in front of stage with his back to us, chattering wildly with an equally cooked girlfriend of his. Even though I do normally manage to get on with the music when this kind of thing happens there was something utterly off-putting about the situation. My eye caught my brother and cousin threatening the obtrusive pair with violence more than a few times, haha. Oh well, we still managed to keep things together and my parents didn't threaten with suspension of my allowance or anything.
Chimes played a cracker after us and even though I think it was a bit loud for my folks, everyone else was loving the wall of guitars for the hour-long show.
The night finished back at our flat where we stayed up partying til about 8 in the morning (roughly the average, spread over the 8 of us).

Predictably, the next day didn't really start before it was over for the drunken folkies. We got up, showered and went straight to sound check at Loppen, Christiania. It was probably the low point of the trip, both due to the insanely potent hang over and the sub-par show the night before. The sound check didn't happen, as a result of strict curfews from the above restaurant, so the nerves were amplified even more in the hours leading up to the gig.
We knew this one was the important one of the two nights. On the back of the Politiken article from the day before we anticipated some 'industry' might show up and really wanted to prove to ourselves that we could do better than we had.
But but but, we pulled it out of the bag and delivered an absolute stormer to a good-size and very recipient crowd of Copenhageners. The night stands shoulder to shoulder with our album launch gig as the best Klak Tik have ever had and the last bit of hangover was flushed out with the two truly magical remedies, music and... more alcohol. We had another endless night of folkish debauchery, including frantic 7 am phone calls to the youngest and definitely most rock 'n roll member of the group, Mr Feeney, guiding him homewards in time for our departure.
And that, dear friends, takes us back to the start. Another epic hang over and dreamy flight home, but big smiles on every member of my wonderful band.
A weekend spent in the company of beautiful people and phenomenal music by Chimes & Bells.

We are playing a 'Murmur Box' gig on Thursday 25th at the Troubadour here in London. Come down, we are better than ever!

Love,
Soren

Waking from a long dream

2010-09-01T15:07:00.007+01:00

As I roll over this blog to wake it from the deep cyber sleep, I must turn my head in disgust and comfort myself in the fact that digital pressure ulcers do not smell. Foouah, this blog needs a shower and some clean underwear!

I apologise to you, dear reader, for the absence, and to you, dear blog, as you must now prepare for getting your lazy ass back to fitness.

It was the release of Tony Blair's memoirs which reminded me that we had released something of our own too, only a few months ago.

The 14th of June we finally released 'Must We Find a Winner' and quickly followed up with a wonderful album launch party at a sold out Hoxton Hall, where we played the most exciting gig of our short band life. A night to remember for us, and hopefully the people that were there too!
The reviews for the album have been good, if a little eclectic. A link to one of the better ones, if you like sunshine!

We rode on that wave for weeks, while playing a few more shows in London and our first one abroad, with Chimes & Bells in Christiania, Denmark. This was incidentally my first gig at home since last century (dramatic!). My parents were there and looked reasonably happy. Particularly as my younger brother guest appeared on the organ. Great stuff.

More recently we have been preparing for a busy autumn where we will once again concentrate on London shows and I have been writing more intensely for the new album, which we will start recording really soon. It took me several weeks after releasing 'Must We Find a Winner' before I could even dream of starting over again, but now I am back in gear and dead exited about the next album. For you, of course, we will be performing songs from the current album for the foreseeable future, so if you have not heard the new stuff yet, try and make it down to one of the next shows.

Love

Soren

15 steps

2010-06-02T11:21:00.002+01:00

Right. 12 days to release. 15 to launch. That sounds dirty. It isn't. It's true.

The band is working so hard to get ready for album launch. We have got two brand new players. Alex Mountain on violin and Fred Feeney on trumpet. They are both brilliant but it is a bit of a challenge (for all of us) to learn and master all the tracks we want to play on the 17th June in Hoxton Hall. It will be wicked to play a proper gig with our own sound engineer and 8 people in a stunning venue, I just can't wait.

Jack Cheshire has kindly accepted our invitation and is going to do a set before us on the night, which I am super happy about. His music is just brilliant.

Incidentally (not at all) we are also playing with Jack tonight at the Luminaire which should be cool.

John has taken several cases of albums up to the distributors warehouse today. We are hoping they will never come back. We are receiving album launch posters from Natalie's mum's company Grundfos (bless). Wondering where to put them up. With all the CCTV in this wicked world fly postering has become trickier, to say the least.

Oh yeah, we are playing our first ever gig abroad on the 7th of July. At Byens Lys in Copenhagen (my home). It's being organised by my dear friend Caecilie Trier from the brilliant Chimes & Bells. The venue is an old barn, converted into a cinema, in the middle of Christiania . Absolutely stunning place. Can't wait to see my mum and dad folking out to our stuff.

Wow, some good news just rolled in. My little brother Adam Bonke (26yrs) was just nominated for Young Director's award in Cannes. Woohoo! Amazing.
Congratulations, you little shit. I trained you well, haha.

Bryter Later,
Sorenious

Bang bang bang bang bang....... bang bang bang....... bang

2010-04-20T13:06:00.007+01:00

The soundtrack to my week thus far has been performed by burly men hammering bricks off the wall outside my room. Rather distracting and not a relaxing sound to be hearing at 8am every morning. As a result I've been a bit tense, but all this negative feeling was left behind in Clapton when I went to record some bass for the Polly Tones.

A great pleasure to play on some really wonderful songs and read Viktor's beautifully penned scores. I hope he doesn't go all Lars Ulrich on me for posting one up. The album is going to be great, looking forward to it.

I'm genuinely quite saddened to hear about the passing of rapper Guru, in a genre of music that is not necessarily known for a positive message I always thought he seemed like a intelligent kindhearted person with good things to say.

http://allhiphop.com/stories/news/archive/2010/04/20/22177912.aspx

Klak Tik show at New Empowering Church, London Fields tomorrow night. Although it sounds like a cult I can assure you it'll be a good night.

http://www.themagpiesnest.co.uk/gigs/pbs6-klak-tik

Peace out

John

Long time no election

2010-04-15T16:39:00.005+01:00

It's been a while since I wrote. Since last time much has happened for Klak Tik. Most importantly we've finished the album and have now commenced the three months of PR which seem to be flying by already. To help us with that we have teamed up with Hermana PR, which is one of the coolest PR companies in town. 'Must We Find a Winner' is to be released on the 14th of June. We can't bloody wait. And on the 17th of June we will hold an album launch party at Hoxton Hall in Shoreditch, London, a beautiful old listed music hall which we expect will be the perfect setting for a hopefully epic night of music. We are still searching for the perfect support band and have some great ones in mind, but we are also very open to suggestions if you can think of any?
Oh yeah, we won a grant for a nice chunk of cash from Grundfos, which is now one of my favourite companies. That money will help us put the show on on the 17th. Great stuff!

In other news, the Klak Tik home studio has changed address. I have moved up the road to Stoke Newington from where we have already started working on new tracks and have got ourselves a great new practice space. Padangle house will always be remembered fondly, but we are happy to move on and hopefully we will achieve an even better DIY sound on recordings to come.

As always, you can see our gig diary on Myspace or Facebook (are we friends yet?). We've got a few shows coming up before the launch still.

Keep your head up and the 17th of June free! oh and don't vote for David Cameron...

Love
Sorenious

Danelaw

2009-08-01T13:34:00.002+01:00

I am back in London, after a much needed week out of the big smoke. We went on an exciting road trip which took us through Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, Devon and Cornwall. We saw Britain from it's very best sides. The wild rugged yet green and inviting Tors of Dartmoor, from which you can see the sea by Plymouth 30 miles away. Lands End, the end, or the beginning as the locals might have it, of Britain. The stunning coast line of Cornwall, surprisingly well suited for surfing.
But now I am back in my home planted forest of music instruments, my battle field, my sanctuary.
I am a bit more than half way through recording the album (I think), but there's still a lot of work to do. I really had not imagined that it would be so much work to make it. But it is. I think it will be good though and there is nothing else I aspire to do more in my life right now than this. Though sometimes struggling with adolescent impatience and "too much homework" feeling, I will keep working hard till it is done. Maybe another month before mixing starts.

I have got to go. Matt is coming over to record for the rest of the afternoon and night. Just a quick game of tennis before. Last weeks score: Matt vs Soren 6-3 3-6 3-6. Yes.

Sorenious

Playstation

2009-07-01T11:23:00.003+01:00

This week I am working in Soho (Klak Tik is not quite providing enough income to live off yet, haha), and what better place to be working than for Sony Playstation! It's a wicked modern office in the heart of Soho so jammed full of action figures and random toys, digital as well as physical, and swarming with kids with beards or stubble. Everyone seems to love what they do here (no wonder, there's a soft drink vending machine where you just press vend without putting money in, and a next level hot drink dispenser which knocks out a killer hot chocolate in 16 seconds. There's a timer).

Anyway, I suspect by the end of the week I will be gagging to get back to my creaky floorboards and dusty green teas, back to the recording of the album.

A small injection of normal life isn't too bad though, I think I was going a bit stir crazy after a full month at the flat, or should I say, IN MY HEAD...

Gigs in July:

15th at the Brittannia in Victoria park village

25th at the Spice of Life. Matt's as well as my parent attending that one, so expect a clean family orientated performance without the usual onstage debauchery.

gigs

2009-06-01T11:24:00.002+01:00

oh yeah, only two gigs booked at the moment.

20th of June at the Spice of Life in London. Just a small acoustic performance where Matt, John and myself will be playing a bunch of new songs from the upcoming album.

21st of June at the Big Session Festival in Leicester. I think about mid day on the Orange tree stage.

s

Not enough letters in the alphabet

2009-06-01T11:17:00.002+01:00

Hej.
Just checking in. We've started recording the new album. The first few tracks are done, and we're super pleased so far. Recording is fun, even when the weather is stunning outside. I originally thought these recording would become more acoustic and folky then their predecessors, but now it looks more like the pseudo orchestral feel that some of the old songs have is the way forward.

I am hoping we'll finish some time over summer and have the album ready in a couple of months. I seriously can't wait.

I wish you and the rest of the world a very happy summer. Even if you live in Ireland, or in the Southern hemisphere and summer is 6 months away...

Sorenious

Band rehearsing

2009-03-09T17:26:00.005Z

This is a somewhat blurry version of what it looks like when Klak Tik is rehearsing. The smiling is only because someone is taking a picture, mind.

The trumpets usually play into the wardrobe. A way to control the volume of the trumpets, and the trumpeters themselves.

Loose and firm

2009-03-04T15:57:00.002Z

So, the last few months have been spent getting the full band together and learning songs, new and old. There's eight of us now. Who would have thought I'd manage to get that many people together. I am very happy with how it's going, the band is a good mix of band orientated musicians and orchestral ones.
A couple of weeks ago we played our third gig, the first one with all eight of us. It felt like a goal reached for me. Hopefully there will be many more.

Apart from that I have been writing lots of new songs. We are planning to record and release a mini-album of maybe 6 or 7 songs in which Chris will be playing vibraphone instead of drums (it sounds magical!). They will be slightly less arranged, more intimate songs, recorded live in Padangle house (my flat).

Apart from that I have been busy shooting pics on my Lomo. I will upload a few samples as soon as I get my hands on a scanner.

My amp is buzzing for me to get back to playing, and I know well to obey it's call.

Sorenious HonkyBonk

2009-02-06T12:54:00.002Z

Amazing. A Klak Tik snowman made by William. Guess who it's supposed to look like.

Gigs booked

2009-01-21T09:44:00.001Z

Friday 30th January 8pm - Spice of Life, London
Thursday 19th October 8pm - The Slaughtered Lamb, London

hamas

2008-12-30T00:16:00.003Z

is firing rocket at Israel??? I think there's more fire to discuss!
EVERYONE, STOP.

Anyway, I'm finding it hard to relate, like everyone else. Short rushes of empathy, followed by guild, forgotten by ambition, vanity, alcohol. Life is short, and the distance is long. I want to reach far, but with a short and focused grip. Firm, but merciful.

I want to go home. I never want to go home.

The Black Dog's Progress

2008-11-03T12:48:00.003Z

Here's the short animation I did the music for. Great, isn't it!

The Black Dog's Progress from small time inc. on Vimeo.

The governing thoughts

2008-10-01T11:18:00.003+01:00

We are probably playing the first ever Klak Tik gig on the 21st of November at the Spice of Life in Soho, London. After that, rock gods permitting, we'll probably be gigging more regularly and hopefully adding a few more musicians to the outfit. I think having a violinist and a trumpeter could add a great deal to the music, and I guess we would get a bit closer to the sound of the recorded material.

Oh yeah, and a picture I took in Vietnam, which is going to be used on the cover of the forthcoming ep, has been shown on the frontpage of The Guardian's art/design section, which is cool.
Yup, ep coming up. It's called Kapitel8, and it's a web mp3 label type of thing. I can't wait for the release.

ep artwork

2008-09-10T18:03:00.002+01:00

feeding off the lomo

Biased?

2008-08-27T17:50:00.001+01:00

I'm thinking of compiling the tracks so far onto an album and put a bit of a full stop to the work so far. The album will be called "Biased" and I have made some artwork for it.

Is it a band?

2008-06-23T10:19:00.004+01:00

I have started recruiting able hands to help me perform my songs, and it's going really well. I'm going to Cambodia for a bit over summer, but when I get back Klak Tik will be a live band too and I can't wait. I miss playing live so much and I'm really excited to see what people will think of my songs.

Apart from that I went to a family get-together in Denmark over the weekend and my gorky cousin of 18 damn near broke my foot in a brutal tackle while we were playing drunken football in the garden at midnight. Ouch, sports and alcohol. And teenagers. And near 30-year-olds, think they can keep up with the kids.

Oh, and here's a quote. From Watership down. I absolutely love it. I think there's a song in there, eh! Digger, listener, runner, prince with the swift warning.

"El-ahrairah, your people cannot rule the world, for I will not have it so. All the world will be your enemy, Prince with a Thousand Enemies, and whenever they catch you, they will kill you. But first they must catch you, digger, listener, runner, prince with the swift warning. Be cunning and full of tricks and your people shall never be destroyed."

Beautiful

Deluxe mugs and human diversity

2008-05-15T10:28:00.003+01:00

This is going to sound stupid.

Where I work there's a kitchen and in the kitchen there's a cupboard. In the cupboard there's mugs. Until recently the cupboard was a little less than half full of a rather eclectic collection of mugs which had presumably taken years to become what it was. Small, large, blue, white, old, new, chipped, handleless, patterned, with logo, etc. The only thing they had in common was that they could contain a hot liquid without leaking or breaking, in short, all you could ever expect from a mug. I don't remember having a favourite but subconsciously I would probably have picked a bigger one if I felt more tired. Or a white one if I was feeling confused. Or a handleless one if I was cold.
But a little while ago the rest of the cupboard was filled. The company had acquired an entire army of new white mugs with the red company logo on the side.
I think if I asked any of my colleagues here what they thought of the new mugs they would probably say that they hadn't thought much about them, but that they were pleased that the cupboard almost never ran out of clean mugs anymore. Until yesterday I would probably have said the same, but then I became aware of a subconscious choice of mug I made yesterday. It was afternoon and most of the new identical company mugs were in the dishwasher or on peoples desks, but instead of just grabbing any mug I caught myself moving some of the "other" mugs out of the way to try to find one of the new deluxe ones. !

That made me think about archetype, diversity, uniformity and the majority. Do you see what I mean?

Download Klak Tik songs.

2008-05-07T10:13:00.005+01:00

Hey reader/listener. Here I've posted a few tracks for you to download, should you be so inclined.

Culinary Skills of a Modern Man

Zeitgeber

Heatwave

Concrete Under the Bridge

Martin & Victoria og os

Christopher McCandless Dies Alone

I Sing, Like Everyone

The Ghost in the walls

2008-04-14T09:54:00.011+01:00

I read an interview with the great Colin Meloy from the Decemberists by Laura Barton on the Guardian website. They were supposed to write a song together while she was interviewing him. It turned out that he was a little self-conscious about writing in front of her, but in the end they managed a bit of a melody and one verse worth of lyrics. Laura Barton challenged the Guardian readers to try and finish the song, either just the lyrics or actually the whole song, guitar and all. I decided to give it a go, so got up reasonably early on Saturday, finished the lyrics and came up with some fingerpicked guitar to accompany the melody. I made a chorus and a middle section and then recordet the whole thing. It took me most of the day, but I had a great time doing it. I hope it'll somehow end up in Laura's ears, if not in Colin Meloy's. Anyway, check out the song.

Ghost in the Walls

And here are the lyrics.

I hear the floorboards creak
I hear them in my sleep
and now I rise to go aloft,
all padding soft
to catch you lost and lonely call
all through the walls

I open up the door
No creaking anymore
I sit and listen for a while,
and then I smile
You always loved to hide from me,
so I wait patiently

I'll sit here in this very chair
for as long as I can carry myself up these stairs
My boy, you don't have to be sad
I've lost my son, but you've not lost your dad
and I know you can hear me,
my little ghost in the walls

Before I go to rest
I open up the chest
the photo album in my lap
I feel a tap
a tear of joy and one of pain
a tear for all you could've gained
I close my eyes and then I wait
you turn the page

I'll sit here in this very chair
for as long as I can carry myself up these stairs
My boy, you don't have to be sad
I've lost my son, but you've not lost your dad
and I know you can hear me,
my little ghost in the walls

Wanting Time to slow down

2008-04-04T17:52:00.004+01:00

I want time to slow down. But I don't want anything bad to happen. And time only ever seems to slow down when something bad happens. What a shame.
Off to watch Shine a Light now. I'm guessing that won't slow down time.

energy

2008-03-28T11:00:00.003Z

I've got it, I've got energy, I've got power, I've got ideas, I haven't got time to even shower, I haven't even got time to put a full stop, only kommas, I must make something, I must drink a latte, no, no latte, might push me over the edge, oops now I had a latte, wow, I feel ok, I feel great, great, I might even try a cigarette, NOOOOO, yes, NOOOOO, yes, NOOOOO, yes, fuck it.

pppffffffhhhhh aaaahhhhhhhh

I feel like shit. Actually. f.u.l.l...s.t.o.p.s....i..w.i.s.h...i...w.a.s...a.t...h.o.m.e...i..h.a.t.e...t.h.i.s...s.h.i.t...j.o.b...i...n.e.e.d..t.o..s.t.o.p...s.m.o.k.i.n.g...

Lyrics

2008-03-09T22:39:00.007Z

Here's some more lyrics, in no particular order.

SturM und Drang

A sea that begins and ends

with no shores

Waves crash agains glass

and shock your frame

Your lungs struggle for air

You're near submerged

The fights under your belt

weigh you down

Your screams reflect off the walls

hollow and wet

recoil from a transparent throat

But you can't drown

you can't drown

Do you want to be freed

How do you want to be seen

Climb out of your glass

No storm blows out here

The Culinary Skills of a Modern Man
I am a traveling chef
My knife never rests
I've got blood on my hands
And ice in my chest
And I'll warm you up and cool you down
and cook you tenderly

My pots and pans are
the skulls and rib cages
of beautiful feeble creatures
with spiteful, able features
I warm them up and cool them down
and cook them tenderly

First I smell
Then you see,
Then I taste
And then we feel

My meat of choice is
Wild hearts and free souls
Lured in by adjustable brain waves.
From a controlled breeding ground
To ensure match
Sweetened with a deceiving tongue

Concrete under the Bridge

There's a statue on the square

That's not yet turned to stone

I see it from my window

I feel it in my bones

All the stately grandeur

For passers-by to find

Masks that piercing gaze

That's intercepting mine

I can't keep you out

the wave wont break

frozen in time

concrete under the bridge

In the morning sun

You let yourself be watched

And by the hands of time

You let yourself be touched

I can't keep you out

the wave wont break

frozen in time

concrete under the bridge

Martin & Victoria and Us

2008-03-09T22:19:00.004Z

This weekend I wrote and recorded a new song. It's about an old friend from school and how he became my friend. I managed to create a triple meaning to a phrase in the song, I'm proud to say. Maybe a bit tenuous but still.
I sing "you, more than I, wrote our first song. It was A minor."
The song's title Martin and Victoria is also the title of a book we read in school at that time (about 14, I guess) and the main character Martin's favourite chord is Am. The song my friend and I wrote was also in Am and, DRUM ROLL PLEASE, the chord I play at that point in my song is also Am. Voila, amazing.

Here are the lyrics. My Myspace to hear/download the song.

When we were young and you sat next to me
I was wrong, you were not really who I though
You had much more to say now than I remembered

I used to think, that you were simple
like the way you wrote your name down
that somehow you wouldn't understand
what I was and where I came from

You watched the world from the moon
through a home made lens,
wide enough to observe all the movement.

When we were young and you forgave me
we both got strong
you more than I wrote our first song
It was Am
And that night, I saw your beauty

You watched the world from the moon
through a home made lens
wide enough to observe every movement

You were lying, when you said to me
that it's not coming
that you're the one to change
I'd trade my place, to be who you are

NOT ALL BALLS CAN BE PLAYED WITH

2008-03-04T09:46:00.009Z

This morning I woke up feeling physically sick because a hard ball of anger and frustration was bouncing around relentlessly in my belly trying to find a way to escape and explode out into the world in a massive silent roar that would only be felt, not heard.
Now I should find out why I woke up feeling like that, but I don't want to. I just want it to go away. I know some things are frustrating me, but I don't want to focus on them. They'll only tip me over the edge. I feel like those Airbus pilots in Germany yesterday must have felt. I know something is really wrong but I hope if I just concentrate and get the job done, then all that fear and doubt and anger will be replaced by a single moment's profound relief and then a savage urge for MacDonald's or something disappointing like that.
I keep my eyes on the ball and hold my breath until this dark cloud has passed over my head and over the head of some other unfortunate sod. Negative acidic thoughts dropping from the sky shall be deflected heroically by my multi coloured south-west. I will overcome this darkness. Aha, coffee! That's what I needed. Blue skies above. My day can begin. Oh, look, a daffodil.

self promotion

2008-02-26T11:40:00.004Z

I'm at it. I'm doing it. I'm polishing my ultra-narcissistic digital image. Generation ME. Generation Mirror. I've been uploading my music to various sites and trying to find friends and trying to make it look nice. last.fm, Myspace, Facebook. I'm trying to make Klak Tik something that exists in real life by painting it's image on my own digital reflection for everyone to see. Ironic. But hey, it might work, and I might soon be sipping lattes at noon to get the creative juices flowing before jumping into a few leisurely but intensely enjoyable hours of recording music at home. That would be cool. Zzooo coool.

Anyway, you can download six tracks for free and play them as much as you like and bin them if you don't want them anymore or give them to your friend.

Check my profile on last.fm and myspace and even facebook

Learning to speak

2008-02-22T17:18:00.002Z

Here's another graphic effort. A lot closer to the experience in feel.

more artwork

2008-02-21T14:53:00.002Z

I made another graphic. I like this one better. Now the first one reminds me of a big sun, when really it was just the bottom of a coffee mug.

Why am I here at work making graphics for my music, when I should be at home making music for my graphics. I can see a catch 22 brewing like a storm on the horizon...

Klak Tik artwork

2008-02-20T17:17:00.002Z

Here's the first bit of artwork for Klak Tik. It's funny how a bit of artwork makes you perceive the name differently, no?

You can click on the image to make it bigger.

Welcome Klak Tik

2008-02-20T17:14:00.000Z

Thank you, Klak Tik