12/10/24

My activity in the written word space has been a bit quiet in recent times and so I am very pleased to say that my piece 'Invocations' has been included in the 2024 ZineWest Anthology. The launch took place earlier today in Parramatta and you can purchase your copy here.

06/09/24

A special Bandcamp only EP release containing two versions each of two previously unreleased tunes:

A1/B1 will and the hat; and

A2/B2 dark room.

will and the hat is a short happy kind of tune

dark room is a long and unhappy kind of tune

Included are studio recordings of both tunes in addition to live versions as recorded at the Gasoline Pony in Marrickville NSW on 19th June 2024 by klangmoss featuring the bardsmith Marc Stanislas and the professor Xavier Traynor.

20/06/24

Had an amazing night playing to a great crowd in the wonderful The Gasoline Pony last night with the magnificent help of The Bardsmith (aka Marc Stanislas) & the professor (aka Xavier Traynor).

The night started out with Barn Coren (from Cashed Up and Juliette) playing a string of his own originals, followed by Tom Sowonja (of Delta Green & Adeline fame) playing selections from his Tom Stone and the Soldiers of Fortune back catalogue.

Thanks to all who came out to catch the gig, we had a great time.

Check out instagram.com/klangmoss for additional photos from the night.

The setlist played out as follows:

1. The Wireless (from Farm Market)

2. Barnacles (from mostly incidental music) with the poem "Dew" as an intro

3. Species (from The Wellness Institute)

4. Screen (from The Wellness Institute)

5. Promenade Verte (from Thought Provoking Sub-Branch)

6. Weighing Up The Options (from mostly incidental music)

7. Dark Room (new tune)

8. Will and the Hat (new tune)

9. Languages (from mostly incidental music)

10. Dual (from Farm Market) with the poem "Thread" as an intro

22/05/24

Thats right! klangmoss, featuring The Bardsmith (aka Marc Stanislas) & the professor (aka Xavier Traynor), will be performing at The Gasoline Pony on Wednesday June 19th.

Also appearing that night will be Tom Sowonja (of Delta Green & Adeline fame) & Barn Coren.

Free entry makes it even tastier. Come on out folks!

01/02/24

With thanks to WestWords, catch Marc Stanislas (The Bardsmith) and I chatting with Bryan Estepa about the emotions that inspire him to write, how words, lyrics and music allow us to distort meaning, imposter syndrome, and writing for yourself first.

Available through Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or directly through WestWords

02/10/23
Had a killer time in the mountains on the long weekend playing with the Adeline crew as The Rooftop Beatles as part of Beatlesfest 7 Valleys.

We got to play on the roof of the Royal Hotel in Wallerawang in one of the most unique experiences I have had so far, and then followed it up with a full voiced set of locals at the 7 Valleys Hotel in Lithgow.

Was great to be part of the inaugural running of the festival and meet a bunch of great folks at the same time. Our sound guy Pete was amazing, particualrly navigating the specifics of the rooftop set.

The Blue Mountains Gazette had some very kind things to say.

30/08/23
Pleased to report that, after a few months' leave of absence, my 'Suite for Piano, Flute, and Vibraphone' is back on all of your fave streaming services!

Find it (again!) on Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, YouTube Music, and bandcamp

20/08/23
Let's go folks! I'll be linking up with the Adeline crew to perform two shows as The Rooftop Beatles at the upcoming Beatlesfest 7 Valleys on the Labour Day long weekend.

Get yourself some time in the beautiful Blue Mountains region while also enjoying a big celebration of all things Beatles.

First up for us is a 1pm show on the rooftop of the Royal Hotel Wallerawang

Then we head over to the 7 Valleys Hotel in Lithgow for a 7pm start.

20/08/23
On Friday night 19th August I shared a stage at my old high school, Patrician Brothers College Fairfield (I was class of '94), with fellow old boys Bryan Estepa and Martin Greguric (both class of '96) to take part in the school's 70th Anniversary celebrations.  We had fun playing some tunes from our era plus one of Estepa's own.

Earlier in the day my son Xavier (class of '23) took the same stage with the Year 12 rock band, on drums, and the school concert band, on sax.

A bit surreal,  but great fun to celebrate and see plenty of old faces, including some staff that are still working hard for the students.

22/07/23
I kind of sprung this one out of the box with only a small mention on social media the day before...  I had the opportunity, with thanks to WestWords, to perform the 'Duality Suite' as part of July's WestWords Academy Live event. The Duality Suite consists of alternative versions of four pre-existing tunes, all connected by the theme of duality, condensed into one work. The pieces are:

1. The Wireless (from Farm Market) / Day (Open) (from Self-Importance In Sound Volumes I & II)

2. Screen (from The Wellness Institute - listen on Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, and bandcamp)

3. Languages (from mostly incidental music - listen on Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, and bandcamp)

4. Dual (also from Farm Market)

I was grateful to have The Bardsmith and J.Marahuyo on hand to help me out in presenting the material.

23/06/23
I had the pleasure of being on the judging panel for the 2023 WestWords Living Stories Writing Competition - 'The Other City'. Once again the judging process gave me the opportunity to enjoy the wonderful array of writing styles and appreciate the craft of talented writers who interpreted the theme in often surprising ways. The book will launch on July 14th.

You can find a list of the winners and highly commended entrants here: https://www.westwords.com.au/living-stories/ 

and a copy of the collection here:

https://www.westwords.com.au/product/living-stories-the-other-city/ 

07/04/23

‘The study of process aspect was, at times, quite fascinating and provided greater context to some pieces that either confirmed or clarified my thoughts…’

You can read my review of the Driftwood Press 2023 Anthology on Compulsive Reader here:

http://compulsivereader.com/2023/04/06/a-review-of-the-driftwood-press-2023-anthology-edited-by-james-mcnulty-jerrod-schwarz/ 

27/02/23

My essay 'I Write for a Living' has been published on the Sydney Review of Books.

I was a grateful recipient of a 2022 Sydney Review of Books/WestWords Digital Residency and developed this essay with the help of Catriona Menzies-Pike's patient and generous mentorship.

Be sure to keep checking out the Sydney Review of Books and subscribe to their newsletter while you are there.

09/12/22

I had the pleasure of being on the judging panel for the 2022 Blacktown City Mayoral Writing Competition. It was fantastic to have the opportunity to read all of the submissions and enjoy the vast array of writing styles and the great talent of the writers.

You can find a list of the winners and a copy of the resulting anthology here: https://www.westwords.com.au/project/blacktown-2022-mayoral-creative-writing-prize-what-now/ 

29/11/22
I won't personally be reading at this event but wanted to share the details anyhow as a number of my fellow WestWords 2022 Academians will be reading at this great showcase of their prose and poetry.

It will be held on Thursday 8th December in Parramatta and more details can be found here: https://events.humanitix.com/best-in-the-west-evening-with-emerging-poets-and-writers 

20/10/22

Have been super fortunate to have been one of the 2022 Sydney Review of Books/WestWords Digital Residency recipients.

Across the end of 2022 Catriona Menzies-Pike was a patient and generous mentor in guiding me through the development of an essay due to appear in the earlier part of 2023. Can't wait to share it with you.

Until then be sure to keep checking out the Sydney Review of Books and subscribe to their newsletter while you are there.