Arctic Monkeys

3 good days in a row, a rare thing not unrelated to 3 days off work I'm sure.

Day 1, Sunday 22/01/06: After last weeks' chart high of 15, Chav Song climbs 6 places to 9 and into the top ten. You've all heard it so no recording to download this week but if you're suffering symptoms of withdrawal, you can feed your habit here. This should mean a good deal more airplay and if the song is taken in the right way, a safer experience when hanging around shopping centres might be enjoyed by all. If you've ever felt threatened by society and it's 'variety' please follow this link to help keep our streets safe...innit.

Day 2, Monday 23/01/06: My birthday. I have now joined my friends at the Limited Edition in our rapid approach towards maturity. As you can see by these photos we're all turning into fine young men fully justifying the greater responsibilty our years of wisdom have brought us. For the record, I am still in posession of the photography from the early years of our musical 'air' development although have no immediate plans to share these celluloid moments with the wider population.

Day 3, Tuesday 24/01/06: First gig of the year. Lovely little venue in Greenwich, managed to fill the room with fans of The MüVs to whom I'm more grateful for making the trip on the coldest London night I can remember than it is fitting to try and capture in words here. Thank you, you were wonderful. There is a highlights video here for anyone who couldn't make it, and anouncements of forthcoming tour dates here. Unfortunatley, being the end of a very long January, most of the locals didn't step out of their doors so the crowd was far from capacity. I'm content enough however in the knowledge that not so long ago, Arctic Monkeys were playing to crowds of 10 and now look at 'em go! Haven't got the album yet and would welcome some readers reviews (post a comment).

Some photos of the night, courtesy of Dave Phunk:


at time of press we're at number 4...need I say more.

The Burberry Bikini

After another weekend of heavy exposure on Pulse Rated radio I'm pleased to announce that The MüVs were a high new entry in at number 15. We did at one point mid-week reach the dizzying heights of 5 and there are as yet unconfirmed reports of a brief period at number 4 but alas, a voting frenzy held us fast at 15.

I have to say though, I'm mighty pleased with the result as a debut entrant and hope this is really something to build on. Many thanks to everyone who voted, particularly those of you who logged in every 24 hours on the dot to cast your vote (Matt, you deserve a special mention for the 3.23am episode). My incessant nagging does not however stop here, I'm hoping to retain a position in the top 40 so yep, by all means take a breather but please, continue to cast your votes here.

Anyone who didn't catch the broadcast might want to click on this link to download the Pulse Rated session part 2. For those of a less than arsed nature, I'll provide a quick breakdown of the major talking points:

• As already discussed, a final chart position of 15 - not to be sniffed at.
• Kate once again gets confused with the other, less well know Kate Thornton.
• They get the name right! Once...
• Chav Song lyrics taken into consideration as chart presenter Kylie admits to owning a Burberry Bikini and then advises that there is nothing to be frightened of. Well thanks, that's put me at ease. Which handily provides a perfect segue to my next topic...

...the publicity ball continues roll. Thanks to Amy for providing the er...canvas and Jakky for the inspiration.

Apologies for the quality of this photo: A combination of a dark pub, dodgy camera phone and some very shaky hands courtesy of senor Stella Artois...reassuringly strong. For some real photos, please visit the Limited Edition.

Gig on the 24th. Trying not to get too excited but it's looking increasingly likely we're going to score some great gigs in Camden, Piccadilly and Islington. Watch this space.

I'm off to consider the predatory nature of the Burberry Bikini, take care.

Pulse Rated Shows this weekend

The MüVs on The A List Sessions & Hot Trax!:

One of our tracks features on Hot Trax with Lexi Jade, this Saturday 14th January at 18:00 GMT. The show repeats on Mondays 12-1pm & Fridays 8-9pm. Check out the show page here.

Another track features on The A List Sessions with Lynsey Hooper, this Sunday 15th January at 16:00 GMT. The show repeats on Tuesdays 12-2pm, Thursdays 12-2pm & Fridays 6-8pm. Check out the show page here.

And of course thanks to all of you they will also be on the Pulse Rate Update with the Chav Song (the top 40 -last seen at no. 15!) which is on Sunday 18:00 GMT. You can email the shows from the, links above.

Please tune in, tell your friends and don't forget to vote.

Ta X

Vote. And vote like mad

Short and sweet tonight. Please vote for The MüVs at Pulse Rated now!

You can do it every 24 hours and we'd love to be in next weeks top 40 plus we're top of the Hot Trax list and want to make the most of it. Please note it's not the rating system that counts but the shiny 'vote' button above it.

Ta.

What's in a name?

At the time of posting this blog has the potential of having it's most amount of hits ever. I have no way of measuring this so we'll never know, but food for thought as we'll see.

The reason for this sharp rise in fortunes has been The MüVs presence on Pulse Rated radio, thanks to everyone who tuned in and voted - you rock. If you missed it, I've created an mp3 download here (with bonus Jimi the Vox pops) which you can put onto your iPod in a kind of podcast fashion and enjoy the edited version of three different shows. Alternately, there's the repeats, don't forget to keep voting...(every 24 hours!)


So why all the fuss about large numbers of visitors here, isn't that the idea? Well yes of course, but why immediately after I've posted a rather inflammatory call to the people and their unions? Talk about timing, where were you after stuntman!

Oh and it's pronounced moovs by the way, well it was anyway.

The Big Time?

The MüVs are going to be featured on Pulse Rated radio tonight!!! All tracks have been selected for the playlist so we don't know what they'll play but we do know where and when:

• Hot Trax with Lexi Jade from 6pm GMT (repeated Mondays 12-1pm and Fridays 8-9pm)
  
• Rock The Box with Jimi the Vox from 9pm GMT (repeated Monday 8-10pm and Wednesday 10-12pm)

You can listen in on Sky channel 905 or click on the launch radio button to the right.

Don't forget you can also vote for The MüVs on Pulse via the following banner:



Thanks for all the votes and comments so far, it's you guys that are making this happen.

x

Trade Union

Merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Had an excellent Christmas at home with the snowman and the lady of the house (seen here on Parliament Hill where we felt particularly out of place without a kite).

New Year was a similarly low-key affair though not entirely by design. London has never been an easy place to live and certainly never a cheap place for the everyman. Commuting around the capital is considerably more expensive than feeding yourself although at least as necessary if you're to afford the extortionate rent. Small savings can be made by buying in advance - the travelcard is pocket sized, fancy and saves my peers and I enough for a pint at the end of the month (not to be sniffed at with these prices!). It allows me travel on buses and tubes across the capital and is vital for maintaining your sanity through contact with friends with whom you can dissect the problems of the city, work on your carefully constructed fantasies for escape and discuss new and effective ways to avoid signing up to charities on Oxford Street.

It's a dog eat dog city, and then the buggers go on strike. Not on Monday morning when an excuse for being late for work wouldn't hurt one little bit, on New Year's Eve, the one night of the year it's free to travel on the tube and it's open most of the night. I'm all for trade unions and where necessary industrial action, as a kid I marched with Scargill on the miner's strike and to a lesser degree I feel I'm doing my bit by carrying The Guardian around whilst allowing a feeling of self-worth to wash over me. I can't help but feel that this strike hurts the little guy more than is strictly necessary. I'm applying for a refund for New Year's Eve, you too can join my political stance here. Chris Martin eat your heart out.

All this meant that our nearest allies in the fight for a most drunken night in on the last night of '05 couldn't make it and so it was left to Kate and I to plough our way through the Gin and '06 pie:

I'm taking some time off for the gig on the 24th and would love it if some of you could join us for a party. We can offer food, drink, bed and pool for those of you willing to make the trip and it's my birthday on the 23rd so a good time is sure to be had.

BREAKING NEWS: The Pulse Rated have added The MüVs to their radio playlist. From what I can gather they offer the opportunity to vote for artists so once again I'm calling in the favours - please vote for The MüVs and let me know if you hear us playing.



Christmas. Despite all the whining of previous posts I had a bloody lovely time and got some (I don't use this word lightly) incredible chocolate spread - thanks Clare. I know it's been good because going back to work has been a b*tch, I'm joining the union.