Louise Evans

A night of meddlesome dreams, laboured commuting by bike, a head full of fuzz. On Friday I go North once more, to see Ben and Fleecie, my home in the Bay of Islands. It will be the best, to go to sleep in the loft, to wake and have coffee and Ben’s precocious porridge, to laugh and to be ridiculous with them. And then it’s to Martha-Louise’s concert, and pizza oven antics with Mark and Tanya, amongst the subtropicals.
Idyllic

Ho-ho-ho, twas Winter Solstice. This year I refrained from attending any massive celebrations, like I normally would have up North. Instead I made things for myself, and gave thanks for the halfyear that has been, with all its immense trials and tribulations. Ate sun-fruit (persimmons, mandarins, etc) and had a moment with my beautiful grandfather oak in the backyard.
Last week I finally got the tattoo of the Scythian stag on my shoulder, and I feel positively enpowered. The stag (in a symbolic sense) stands on the earth, and his horns bear the cosmos. Essentially, he is the living, breathing being between earth and sky, which is something that resonates for me, achieving that balance in life. And now he sits on me! Slippin’ and slidin’ over my shoulder.

Two announcements
www.jamradio.co.nz
www.lamppost.co.nz

I have two new ventures now living on the internet! Today we launched Jam Radio, the project I have been working on since January. It’s amazing seeing it come to life, along with all the incredible energy people have put into it. This is what I work at 4 days a week, and I’ve never been happier in a job.

Lamppost is my new folk music booking agency, which finally has a web presence. Nuff said.

I have just spent an AMAZING five days in Nelson, with Brendyn and Marcia, for the Irish music weekend. Staying with B & M was, as always, an enlightenment, especially now Marcia has a beautiful bump for us to take for walks. Nights were filled with music until the wee hours, and days filling the head with talk and laughter and liveliness. I walked upon mountain on Friday and the trees scuttled their leaves, sending them fleeing across my vision, the mountainside corroding in autumnal rust. Melancholic, epic.

I feel the season decompose my uncertainties, my true self occupies with confidence.

I’ve been long away from the computer, and it’s been for a bloody good reason- trying to figure out my life and get my mind and body together. I’m entering a whole new chapter now, and it feels as though much of what I knew and was comfortable with has been slowly but surely deconstructed, and I’ve had to reassess the majority of what I do! It sounds big, and it is big. But at the same time I think I can handle change like this, and I feel strength every day. I’ve been thinking about my creativity and how to pursue that, and a lot of this years focus is to really develop musically. Two things to learn – the double bass, and singing whilst playing my fiddle. Both are in Very Hard baskets, but are delicious challenges. I’m also going to get more into my art again, taking up cartooning and painting again, trying to really pull out things that have lain dormant for too long. Watch this space…..

December dawns!
Argh, I have been afflicted with the bane of summer, ye olde hayefevere. It’s dreadful. What’s even more dreadful it’s that last night I took some antihistamines and went totally off the planet…most people who know me know that I don’t like drugs, so to be off my face like this was not a pleasant experience. I felt like a petulant child, as well as drowsy, dizzy, and sweaty. Yuck. At least the sneezing and streaming nose/eyes went away.

Soon we will be heading North, for Chrissie, birthday, New Years, Gaidhealtachd. Will send Ben off on the Morris tour. I can’t wait to get up there again. I have had the Swedish girls here for three weeks, and they have been an excuse to trip up North, but I didn’t feel like I actually caught up with the folks or anything like that.

Ah, the rustling of poplars, the bleating of the sheep()the green grass under the feet, walking to the harbour for a dip, biking into town for a sit on the waterfront, watching the ferry from Lindsay and Liz’s house, all those glorious Treehouse things.

For those who have asked about the infrequency of my posts, I thought I would just scribble a little to let you know I’m still kicking about.

Have been to the Wellington Folk Festival, and it was a nice wee mish, I travelled down with Ben and Josh, good trip down, LONG trip home. Didn’t help that we’d forgotten the tent so had to go into Welly to fetch one. But the bonus was we got to meet Bens rellies, and have tea and a chat to break up the trip.

Feeling musically inspired, and have been burning the torch for awhile now, meeting with cronies here in Auckland. Had a brainstorm with Frances last night on how to start new initiatives to maintain a good flow of musicians into the country. We need fresh blood and events to keep all the struggling music youth inspired to play for their bread.

Time for tea. Hmmm.

I opened ‘Superstratum’ on Saturday, back in the Hokianga. How lovely to travel northward with my big box of masky things to hang on the walls. Admittedly I had been very nervous, the masks didn’t quite look so marvellous when they were in my cluttered room in Springfield Road. But put against the stark white of the Village Arts gallery walls, they became far more regal. Lovely.

Many thanks to those who turned up for our gig at the Bollix the other night, I truly appreciate it! The Bollix became a cosy wee spot, there were no drunken hecklers, just lots of good friends huddled around the nooks and crannies. It was almost disconcerting the tremendous silence which was conducted during our performance. Yum! We hope to be playing again soon. Yesterday Ben, Elspeth and I went to a doco about Alan Lomax’s work, and it was evocative and weather beaten and full of true soul, wit and charm. The whole audience sighed in unison when it finished, well fed at the feast of folklore.