No.6

Hello ether! And thank you Razorlight. There have been some ups...and downs, but "Slipway Fires" is catchy as hell, never taxing, eclectic retro, mildly introspective, less arrogant and more disappointed than previous albums. A hopeful combination.

What are we doing? We live in a noisy, confusing world and like most preceding generations we have a lot of questions. The impact of globalisation has led to a far more varied access to options but somehow we all seem to be hellbent on a world defined by materialism and little else. This doesn't bring much relief, but it's a drug that's hard to shake. (Music change - The Tallest Man on Earth - it's a bit sparser.) Somehow greed has become the defining characteristic of capitalism, which was probably inevitable yet still disappointing. You may think your intentional display of flashy car and designer labels makes you richer and better than others, but all it's saying is that you don't believe you're anything without your accessories. We place our happiness outside of us and in manufactured goods. This leaves us in a cluttered empty space. I'm not saying that quality goods are pointless, just that believing we are buying happiness with our new acquisition is misleading, although usually backed up by an extremely well-researched and expensive advertising campaign designed to make you feel superior/inferior depending on whether you can/can't afford the product. You need a lot less than you are made to believe!

Okay...so here's a feelgood recipe. Creamy Chicken. 8 pieces of free range chicken (of your choice). 3-4 med leeks, washed, topped and tailed and sliced. A punnet of brown/portabellini mushrooms, wiped and chopped. 4-6 med courgettes, washed and sliced, 1 clove of garlic crushed. 1 cup of veg/chicken stock. 125ml dry white wine. 2-3 sprigs thyme. 200ml cream. Salt and pepper to taste. Add a splash of sunflower oil and a little knob (otherwise not recommended) of butter to a saucepan big enough to take all ingredients on a med heat. Fry the leeks until just golden (about 10 mins). Push to sides and add chicken. Brown chicken on both sides and add rest of veg. Stir around a little and add stock and wine. Bring to boil and then reduce heat to slow simmer. Simmer about 30 mins. Add thyme and cream and season. Cook a further 5-10 mins. Serve with a 1/2 brown rice, 1/2 barley mixture. Enjoy.