So I got the new Razorlight album anyway, cleverly titled ‘Razorlight’. I love the new single they have in the charts at the moment, ‘America’ so I thought I would give them another chance to impress me. I have to say that so far I have really not understood all the fuss about them. I thought their first album, ‘Up all night’, was quite samey and simplistic with maybe one stand-out track. If it wasn’t for ’somewhere else’, which I loved, I would have filed them away under ‘Totally over-hyped’ ages ago.
So on the way home the other night I slotted the CD and concentrated on taking in their new album. Well, what a surprise, it would appear that… it has maybe two (tops) good tracks and the rest are rather dull and samey. Nicky pointed out to me that she thinks Johnny Borrells lyrics are bloody awful; I am inclined to agree. There are definitely hints of mimicry in this album too - I’m not sure if he is deliberately trying to imitate David Byrne or not (listen to ‘In the morning’) but it does sound like it. And whilst I don’t usually necessarily mind one band imitating another one (Wolfmother for instance), for some reason it irritates me here.
So I thought I would have a look at what other people were saying about it. No sign of a review on the NME site or perhaps its just that navigating it is a bloody nightmare - I fucking hate the NME site, it really is annoying and shit. The Guardian review of it was full of praise (here) but that is hardly a surprise. I fucking hate the Guardian, its so fucking smug, liberal and right-on. It always makes me laugh when Observer readers look down their nose at me in the pub when I’m reading News of the World - at least I know I’m reading a comic - they think they’re saving the fucking world. Anyway. So really don’t agree with the Guardians review. I thought this review by Liz Colville at Stylus was far more in line with my view, although I can’t help wonder if the writer has something personal against Borrell (here).
I will be interested to see if Razorlight release other songs off this album and if so, which, as I really can’t see anything else getting in the charts. So there you go - if you want a ‘Greatest Hits’ of Razorlight you can burn it on a CD single - ‘America’ and ‘Somewhere Else’ and, oh, that other one. Name eludes me for now.
My rating: 4/10
Now I have almost squared my routine I have started reading up about diet and nutrition. Well this is really a huge subject area! I have read a bit though and basically as long as I am sensible I should be OK. And by that I mean no burgers, kebabs, crisps or other horrible shite and then sitting on my arse and not excercising.
So I am trying to calculate various bits of information I need to know about myself. I found a really good US Navy Marines book on diet and exercise and am reading this at the moment (I think Ihave offered it as an upload on the site. If you want to get in my member area just email me and ask nicely, OK?) it’s really interesting, and very clear; it’s basically written in a way that anyone could understand it (is that a tactful enough comment about US marines? 
) )
So… I have established the following: My Basal Metabolic Rate is 1,643 kcal/day currently and when I am in training (as of 19th) my estimated energy requirement will increase from that to roughly 3,100 kcal a day. My BMI is currently 21 (skimming the bottom of normal range for an averagely built guy) but I havent got my BF% yet. I am going to scoot dahn the Coop tomorrow and use their machine innit, bless.
So now I just have to work out a diet that gives me what I need when I need it and doesn’t interrupt my normal meal times. I also have to make sure I am getting enough protein before training and carbs after training. As me and Nicky like to cook at least one proper cooked meal a day that isn’t ‘bland yet nutritious’ (I would happily eat all my meals like this… what a saddo) I will at least be able to go out and eat with friends if I need to without looking like a freak. Home cooking shouldn’t be a problem as we have access to plenty of fresh fruit and veg and we both love most fish, chicken and red meat, pulses, potatoes etc etc.
So, in between all this, working all day, keeping the flat tidy and all the rest of it you can see that I am as busy as a Japanese Beaver at the moment. Still, got time to start thinking about my gym playlist - this is my favourite bit. Music is my life so this is a pure pleasure. I am joining the Gym on October 15 come hell or high water. Oh, and I suppose I better start looking for somewhere else to live too, seeing as I have a kickout notice for November 5!
I am also trying to do as many press-ups and sit-ups as I can each day and have been working on the weekends for a friend doing manual labour. NOTHING in my book beats the sort of workout you get from doing manual labour. It works out so many different muscles. If you dont believe me you should see my neighbour, Duncan. He is so buff and doesn;t ever go anywhere near the gym. He gets all the workout he needs by being a tree-surgeon. Lucky git.