G R A N T S H A R K E Y . C O M

I am Fracesca

Found this at the Heads.

Thank you!

The old copies of Hands flew out, thank you very much! They should be arriving in the next couple of days!

Now on to lovely, new things! More soon...

I've got a big dilemma with my lame legged Emma...uh-huh, oh yeah... (BAND OF SKULLS ALBUM REVIEW)

One of the best things about seeing Emma over the weekend was a cheeky rip of the Band of Skulls new album, baby darling doll face honey before it comes out. Luckily, I haven't got a CD drive on this little netbook, so there's no chance of me leaking it on the internet. :)

As we sat, talking and smoking, Emma had her injured ankle up on a stool. She had injured it on the video shoot for I Know What I Am in Toronto, on a trampoline. She's so rock and roll...etc etc...

But here is my dilemma; I wanted to write a review of the album for them to use and also include the duel purpose of writing something hilarious for Emma to read about her music to make her leg better. To do that, I was going to be honest and offer all sorts of cynical opinions about minute details that usually get over looked. Be a real areshole.

However, I just can't seem to do that. It's perfect. And more importantly it's a brilliant piece of art.

I'm one of these guys that immediately clamps down on anyone trying to be cool without any substance or passion or integrity. It's the fact that Matt, Russell and Em have substance and passion and integrity that makes them cool.

It's an honest album. The playing isn't perfect, the singing is genuine. Every note is hit (I won't use the term 'from the heart') but from the flesh of the band. Rippling sinew and muscle of a prize fighters from the 30's. With the calm, cold light depression/excitiment of seeing a sunrise on your own in a country you're not familiar with. (I like that feeling - it's a reason to live in my book).

One thing I will say that they can use for some press, it's the perfect album for home working, late night chill out 'all back to mine' sessions, radio bliss and festival headliners. They suit every situation you can put them in.

As I'm listening to the album for the third time since the weekend I'm reading about how the Sun is relatively inactive at the moment. I'm perfectly aware of where I am on the planet and what I'm going to do under that peaceful sphere just as 'Fires' is playing. I'm not melancholic, I'm completely joyful about it. It's such a hard feeling to describe, it's close to euphoria. It's closer to frustration at want to do everything at once. I get it sometimes because the universe sometimes makes a little sense.

Usually the soundtrack doesn't matter that much when I get like it...but this time...it does.

Ooh, PATTERNS! :) [boner] - it's been my favourite song of theirs for years now. Live and recorded, it's a beast of a song that you want to devour you over and over again. {/boner]

Hope the leg gets better at the speed of light, Em. :)

Last EVER 10 Copies of HANDS - SALE NOW ON!

My novella, HANDS, will no longer be published and printed in it's current form. This is a good thing as it's going GLOBAL baby. Details to follow.

Having sold a couple of copies this weekend at gigs, I'm now down to the LAST TEN.

That's 490 sold.

So now I'm offering to sell the last ten, signed if you want (just email when you purchase with what you'd like) with free postage and maybe some other nick-nack I can find.

I'f you've already bought and read the book then thank you sincerely for your support. If it wasn't for the people who are still excited about little stories about Hands, then this book wouldn't be making the moves it's making now.

If you haven't got it - then this is your last chance to get one of the original bindings of the book that I've had so much nice feedback about. These won't be sat around for much more than a week. So act fast!



HANDS - by Grant Sharkey - £5.00GBP

Read the first chapter on PDF HERE.

Thanks again!

A bit more Band Of Skulls!

I'm a lucky boy.

So I few months ago I mentioned that my friends Band of Skulls are doing really well for themselves. Having been iTunes single of the week last week and skipping around North America filming video for their first single, I Know What I Am, they've now touched down back in the UK.

Emma, who's always been the coolest artist you've never met, sprained her ankle during the video shoot, so she's welcoming the break between now and the beginning of June when hopefully they'll be announcing some killer tour dates. She was resting up the other night in Southampton so I popped round to see her.

It was so good to see her. She showed me the artwork for the album (jaw-dropping designs painted by her) and a few animations that their creative team have come up with. Not to mention loads of photos of their sexy teams of people in LA, Toronto and in the UK.

We drank coffee until we had headaches, smoked cigarettes and chatted about all the exciting things that are about to happen (I'll tell you mine later).

But one of the most exciting things is that I'm planning to go up to London this friday (24th) and interview the band before their free show at Cargo.

When Russell, Matt, Em and I seem to talk amongst ourselves, we seem to talk off in interesting tangents, so I'm going to podcast it if I can get used to the software on this netbook in time.

On top of that, I've lit my cigarettes recently with Band of Skulls branded matches. They're so cool.

Email me at info at grant sharkey dot com if you want any questions asked.

Subjects already in the pot are about how mentioning Ed O'Brien in a weblog about the band has led to some interesting internet speculation in Japan, bizarre PR campaigns and the deliciousness of New York City.

If you don't know them yet, you will. Check them out.

Been away for a little while - here was the incidental music.

VERNON REID's 1996 album, Mistaken Identity.

I defy you to listen to this album and not wonder how it got past your radar. On the move or just sat down to work it has the perfect amounts of energy, cool, style, hip hop, humour, joy and sheer charisma to suit your mood/task/destination/location/soul.

Here's some links to the YouTube Upload of the songs (I didn't put them up there, so don't blame me if they're not there when you click - but they've been there for months at the time of posting):

Firstly, MY LAST NERVE. Sounds a little cheesy at first, but wait until the end. It's a pay off worth waiting for.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAhthUi-no4

Secondly, CP TIME. Opening track of the album. You cannot be walking anywhere in the world without a spring in your ultra hip step if this is blaring out of your pod.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjP0JnI7jdA

Lastly for this preview, SIGNED FICTITIOUS. One of the craziest raps I've never been able to learn, groove from the heart. Plus the hilarious 'YEA!' in the middle when he decides to do it all again.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYOC4d9YN34

I love this album. I've loved it for year and it never lets me down. :)