Guided by Sound

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There often comes a time in life when what was once clear cut suddenly becomes a little muddy, like a man with long hair and a leather jacket who won’t listen to any music unless it was written before 1987 (in particular music by a band that refuses that use anything other than guitar, drums and bass) suddenly discovering that he actually quite likes the new Burial album. And for me, that moment is now, for, having spent years trying to spend my birthday sitting quietly in a corner drinking ale and trying not to attract too much attention, I suddenly find myself wanting to do something memorable for the big 30th birthday that is fast approaching. It’s not hard to see why really; I have a mortgage, I have bills and I have a job that not only takes the standard five working days every week, but often takes a fair bit more. Right now I need an escape from real life, I need an excuse to go out and do something fun.

I remember my 18th birthday fairly well. It involved a few beers with friends and a refusal to make it a really late night through a lack of age-proving ID when trying to get in a club. Ironically, I only went to the club to meet a friend who was celebrating his 17th birthday. It was a pretty good night, but in terms of major league celebrations, it was a non-event. My 21st followed a similar line, no problems on the identification front, more alcohol involved and it lasted much longer into the evening. In fact it went on to the next day, and most of the next week. The result was the same though: Enjoyable as it was, it was no different to anything I could have done since whenever the mood struck me.

The problem with these two birthdays was not that I didn’t enjoy them, nor that they weren’t an adequate celebration of those milestones in life. It’s just that they were a bit too... normal. So what could I do that would be fun, memorable and out of the ordinary? There were dozens of ideas flowing around in my head, but it actually didn’t matter, it just needed to be somewhere new or something new. I had the travel bug once more. At first, I had a great desire to go on a huge adventure to some great wilderness (Greenland was in my sights), but these things cost serious money, and apart from the fact that I have just spent my life savings and a lot more renovating a house and therefore just don’t have the money, how many people could I realistically persuade to come with me? Here was the second point that I needed to consider: What is the point in a celebration if I’m doing it on my own?

I thought long and I thought hard, and eventually I reached a conclusion. If I was going to do something fun and exciting and involve as many of my friends as possible, it wasn’t going to happen in one big event. And so, for those still with me on this, I have a bunch of events lined up. Eleven in fact, with something of a theme attached. It’s no longer about my birthday, although one of the events will coincide with the big day, it’s more about escaping the everyday and finding something new. Eleven events. Some day trips, some longer. Some cheap, some more costly. There’s a good chance you will love some of the trips, but also a possibility that you will hate others.

There are so many places, and so little time to see them, that for a while I just couldn’t think of where to go. I sat down and sought my usual source of inspiration, but when the tea was gone I was still none the wiser, so I turned to my constant companion in life: My music collection. Why not? Both music and travel have inspired me at various points in my life, so why not combine them? And that is how I decided where to go, I chose a playlist and let the music, the words, sometimes just the title point me in a new direction. I let the sound guide me. And that is where we are now, right at the start. All those interested listen now. Carry on listening for thirty eight minutes and forty eight seconds. Enjoy the music. Then listen again and think “where the hell is he taking us?” For those unfamiliar with the music, there is a link to download the lot in one convenient little package. All will be revealed well in advance of each event, but for now, listen, enjoy, discover something new.

1. Tom McRae – Draw Down the Stars
2. Mumford & Sons – The Cave
3. Eels – I Like Birds
4. Doves – Snowdon
5. Ian Brown – Dolphins were Monkeys
6. Björk – Hyperballad
7. Pulp – Bar Italia
8. Paul Weller – Broken Stones
9. David Ford – Down by the Sea
10. Idlewild – I Don’t Have a Map
11. The Jeevas – Edge of the World

Link: Guided by Sound

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