14 Malaysia - The Cavemen, Playburst, Milo Dinosaur @ Rumah Api, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The Cavemen, Playburst, Milo Dinosaur @ Rumah Api, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The Cavemen

I'm stood at the hotel desk, checking in, and I notice a sign displaying the room rate that reads "2 hours, 50RM". It's at this point when I realise my plight to save money has led me to staying at a "Love Hotel". These are quite common in Malaysia, allowing consenting adults to have some privacy to engage in some extra-curricular activity. The demand for these types of establishment is down to two things. One, due to the commonality of extended families living in one household, it offers a degree of privacy from prying eyes and pricking ears. Two, the religious laws of Islam that permeate the existence of Malay citizens forbids sex before marriage, so any liberal minded couple is forced to seek pre-marital physicality elsewhere. Given the state of this hotel, I'd go so far to say that this one was more primarily for strangers in the night to engage in a monetary exchange of happiness. More on that later.

I decided to take the opportunity to enjoy a few drinks, and paying for a 'hotel' worked out significantly cheaper than taking a taxi to and from the gig. As soon as I hit the bar at Rumah Api I was greeted by the drummer of THE CAVEMEN, and within minutes I was holding court with other members of the band. At a previous show I had made acquaintances with Rizman who sings for BAD IDEA, and he was hosting the band the previous night in Johor. He had put us in contact, and here I was picking up that lead in true punk rock solidarity. Not that it was necessary, yet it was a simple lead in, as they explained how the previous night they had played a wild show to a bunch of slam dancing hardcore kids, and had stayed up late drinking with the locals. Two nights in to a world tour was bound to give the band an opportunity to cut loose, and the freshness of their faces and sharpness of their wits showed how tour life fatigue was nowhere near taking root. 

The band members were easy to talk to, and I felt comfortable in their presence for the remainder of the night. There is a romantic story behind the band, all in the same high school when the band started 11 years ago; turning heads in their local New Zealand before being ostracised from many venues, and then collectively deciding to move to London, England to carry on the party. Fortunately for most of them they had family members with British passports, so they were able to take advantage of that and live in England for four years, where they have taken part in at least 10 tours in Europe. It sounds like quite the rock n roll lifestyle that we all crave in our youth, and certainly will leave them with many a tale to tell as they transition into adulthood. 

The reality for a band playing that type of music isn't as glamorous as it sounds, as we discuss making ends meet by working short term contracts in shitty warehouse jobs, and  the relative merits of cheap beer offered by Aldi & Iceland. Thankfully the band have been successful in pulling audiences, selling merchandise, and shifting records to make the rock n roll aspect of their lives sustainable. That is quite an achievement for a band with one of their feet straddled in the roots of punk-rock. Humble, down to earth, and eager to have a laugh and joke was a perfect mix for some good company for the rest of the night. Now onto the gig itself.

The first band I saw were MILO DINOSAUR, which is an awesome name for a band. Milo is an Asian institution, a popular chocolate milk drink, and the lead singer / guitarist has the aura and presence of said prehistoric animal category. The band were awesome to say the least - a mix of driving melodies combined with a traditional emo feel. Their other guitarist in particular, was playing some sick solo notes to accompany the melody. They were so good that I even liked their band page on social media, and would seek out seeing them play live again. Up next and in a similar vein were PLAYBURST, who can be pigeonholed in similar categories, yet made sharper transitions to different parts of their songs. These guys were tight, and like the first band I saw, had mean drummer that was competent and liked to hit the skin hard. Their singer was full of charisma and kept the crowd on their toes in between the songs. It was great to finally see some of these types of bands here in Malaysia. 

Milo Dinosaur

THE CAVEMEN lived up to all the hype I had read about them online. They dived headfirst into their set, stomping through their snotty fast punk-rock / garage rock n roll influenced songs. They raced through at a blistering pace, full of grooves, moves, and visuals in bloom. As with other bands who have been playing together for so long, they were tight, and everything felt in rhythm and in time. It was a real pleasure to get to witness them in action, and it reinvigorated my soul and love for punk-rock. After the show, I stuck around for more conversation and beer with the band, and I didn't leave the venue until 2am - which when you are 38, with 2 kids and a professional job that requires you to get up at 6am, is pretty damn rock n roll.

Speaking of love, I found myself back in my hotel room unable to sleep, as out in the street there were some guys with their ladies of leisure who were having a loud dispute with the worker about not being able to stay at the hotel, and they rebelled by staying outside and blasting loud music. When I awoke after a sobering sleep, I took a quick breakfast and set off back on the road, to be back with the ones I love the most, having spent a night in the midst of the music that I love the most. Love family, love punk rock. Peace!  

The Cavemen (Day 3 of a World Tour) - Listen to them here

  

13 Malaysia - Unscripted Moments

For many not the few. The ordinary, banal, and mundane, is just as fascinating as the blissful, surreal, and hypereal moments that rarely desiccate our lives. This post is a run down of some of the average day to day experiences and reflections that have permeated my life recently.

The big news is that the UK is going to have another general election. Wooooooooooo! I can't think of a more welcome distraction from the run up to Christmas than a daily trawl of the Guardian Live news, and my social media posts being filled up with political memes. I have registered as an overseas voter, and I have organised a proxy to vote on my behalf. I guess there is nothing more to be said, I am sure the majority of readers of this blog come from my Facebook echo chamber, so there is no need to wax lyrical about my political thoughts. All I want for Christmas is a Labour government.

Work is still going well. I am really enjoying working at the school. To be honest, my experiences so far make me not want to step back into a UK school anytime soon. It is far less stressful, I am not overburdened with tasks, and I get a far higher degree of respect from my students. It is also making me into a better History teacher, having complete control over the curriculum, and making me carefully consider what knowledge and skills I am embedding. I am loving teaching Modern World history, and I am busy preparing to teach Russia 1905-1956 as the depth study, which is probably one of my favourite topics to teach. I am also enjoying my middle leadership role, and I am being active in improving teaching & learning across the school. There is also a strong assembly culture, where staff and students get to regularly cover important topics and show off their talents - it helps build a great school community and culture. I did one on 'Selfie Culture', which got the whole school out an about in a an activity, which was well received. As well as that, I have a far greater degree of expendable income a month as well as being able to save a considerable amount, and the life outside school that Malaysia is offering me is still novelty and fresh. 

Without my CD collection in tow, and the faff of playing music from my phone via bluetooth for a short journey, I have been listening to the radio in my car. The rotation of music for modern pop songs is pretty limited, and any old songs they play seem to be average pop songs from the 1990s. The funniest bizarre thing about Malaysian radio is that sheer volume of Public Service Announcements that scatter the broadcasts. They are done in English and cover all sorts of anti-social behaviour such as: throwing your take away rubbish out of the car, speaking in the cinema during a movie, and not eating too many fatty foods. In fact, I wish I had kept a list because there are tons of them. I guess they are good for altering mindsets amongst the population, yet for a woke person like myself, they get tedious after a while. Just as tedious as the limited amount of songs on rotation. 

TV habits have remained mostly the same - I can still get access to online wrestling companies, NFL gamepass, and as a bonus, I can now watch most Leeds United games on an international service. We also have Netflix, so we can still watch good TV drama and comedy. 

Alcohol wise, we have found a shop run by a couple of Indian guys, who sell us behind the counter duty free alcohol, so we can get it a bit cheaper. Compared to back home alcohol is more expensive, and not as widely available, so we have benefitted mentally and physically from not drinking as much. The only time we really drink is when we are at home with friends on a weekend, and I am quite OK with that - it's a refreshing change. As for food, my two new favourite things are Laska (a spicy fish broth that comes with noodles and vegetables) & Tempoyak (fermented durian turned into a spicy paste).

Over the past 6 weeks we have had both mothers visiting for a fortnight at a time. We made a visit to Little India, an enclave in central KL callled Brickfields, where we had an amazing selection of curries served on a banana leaf, and took in all the sounds of the Deepavali celebrations. During the October half term, we made a visit to Port Dickson, and spent a few nights at a luxury 5 star hotel, where we stayed in a chalet which was on top of the sea; something like you see in the movies or in Dubai. It was so luxury that we even had our own swimming pool and steam room on our balcony. That was an experience we have only been able to have by making the move to live and work out here. 

It's also worth noting that raising children is still the best job in the world, yet it can be stressful, and they can be pain in the arse at times.

I recently discovered that my educational Youtube account has been deleted, due to some service changes. I unknowingly missed the deadline to get it transferred, and all the videos I have been making over the past 5 years are gone. This is a real shame. Thankfully, none of them will benefit my teaching in my future practice, yet they would have been great to have for looking back on in the future, and also many students could have still benefitted from many of the advice videos I made from my Sociology examiner role. Some of my videos had over 10,000 views, and the all time classic 'Sociology of Moana' video is long gone into the ether. Never mind, it wont be long till this 21st Century Digital Boy is back being creative again. 

And finally, it was great to hear that Candian xenophoic Ice Hockey analyst Don Cherry, has been fired from 'Hockey night in Canada' for his unapologetic nature following another rant live on air. I just hope that Propagandhi still play 'Dear Coaches Corner' live, despite the game being cleansed of his presence in the national media.

Only three more weeks left at work till a four week Christmas break. Keep calm, and fingers crossed for a new & better government.

12 Malaysia - The Mindless Show @ Rumah Api, Kuala Lumpur

The Mindless Show @ Rumah Api, Kuala Lumpur

The parents were visiting, and as a result my partner and I had the rare opportunity of going on a night out together, so we booked a 'healthy living' concept hotel near the venue. Upon arrival at the check in desk, we were upsold a bolt-on massage & treatment for a reduced price, at the attached health spa. There is a phrase I never thought I would ever say "upsold a massage at the hotel check in". The hotel was so pure in it's beliefs that even the complimentary apples upon arrival were 'cleansed with oceal mineral salt - removing 99.9& of pesticides'. Further to this, alcohol was forbidden so we had to discreetly dispose of our cans, and no smoking was allowed within 5 meters of the building. Also part of the complex, was a healthy living cafe, where we ate our tea. I had a 'Sauna Mee', which was essentially raw veg and noodles dropped into a clay pot full of sizzling water. The welness treatement involved dipping our feet in a pool of water whilst fish ate our dead skin - quite the sensation. We then had a long massage in a room designated for couples, and the masseurs were clearly well trained and professional - we felt great afterwards, and that was one of the best massages I have ever had. 

We then counter-balanced the physical and nutritional wellness, with some mental and soulful welness by attending a punk-rock show. We tried to go for a pre-drink at some of the local bars, but they were predominantly full of drunk Chinese men, murdering K-Pop classics on the karaoke, surrounded by women who were looking for additional ways to supplement their income - so we had a sneaky can back in the hotel room. 

We got to the gig, and decided to have a change and drink cider (they have Somersby here). We met up with Sharizal (who was featured in the Accidente article), and had a quick chat before his band THE MINDLESS SHOW opened proceedings. This was their first show for a year, as their singer had been completing his PhD, and they have been playing together for many years now. We enjoyed their set of 90s style melodic punk (surprise surprise) and they had similar song structures to older LAGWAGON songs. After their set, we hit the bar in the venue and met with a Finnish guy who was also living and working in Malaysia. We all got on great and spent the rest of the night in the bar. It was great to talk about Finland again, and discuss Finnish punk rock - he was about 24 and from Lappeenranta and also knew some of the obscure bands I once booked shows for in the UK, such as KAUNIIT POLIISIT. There were a couple of hardcore bands playing whilst we were in the bar, but it wasn't really our cup of tea, it was just nice to feel and experience the 'bar' culture again, banter, drinking, and loud music.

Thanks once again to Rumah Api for putting on the show, and thanks to the parents for looking after the kids. Get out and support your local punk venue, and get out and spend some money on looking after yourself.