Well hello,

SAD NEWS

Mary Bird our bassist Dan Birds mum recently lost her truly well fought battle with that evil fucking horrible illness.. cancer. Rock mum is now tucked up safe and sound with all her loved ones on the other side, watching over us all from the best seat in the house and ready to pull us up on shoddy performances when we all get up there.  Rock mum, from your loving son Dan, Rock Dad, your family and your friends, From Myself, Grez, Chris and Duffman… Rest in eternal peace we will do you proud. xxxx

Our thoughts this time of year also go out to My uncle Stu and to Chris’ Dad Rob Miggells, who both also lost there battle with cancer.  As we approach both there anniversary’s, Rest in eternal peace. xxxx

RE-RELEASE

2012 has been a little strange to say the least.  We left 2011 on a massive high after the Christmas release ‘Dance down the local’ charted 18 worldwide and the last 4 dates of the tour totally sold out.  So… we had huge plans for 2012 and were determined on world domination, or at least UK.  To press that hasn’t panned out, but we have been as busy as bees this end trying to sort out re-releasing Fishing with dynamite as I have actually parted company with my label Platinum Records. as you are probably aware the original release of FWD was totally recorded in my home studio, I pretty much did everything.  the thing is myself and my newly named band “The Kings” have been working together for so long now the songs sound totally different live and anyone who has been to a show can hear the void that is the difference between what I recorded in my humble home studio and the sound we create live as a five piece band. its pretty fucking huge! and re-mixing and mastering the originals we all decided we needed to release the tracks with the energy we portray live.  The only way to do this is to re-record the entire album as a band in a pro studio, Alas Andy at Superfly studios has kindly agreed to track the album for us, we go in next week (Tuesday) and will not rear our heads until it is down live.

The Album will be mixed here by myself as I feel I am the only one who knows the tracks well enough to do them justice at the crucial point of mixing, The Kings will play a part in this process also.

Its then off to Mr Dave Burn at the music box Newcastle to be mastered then hopefully a week or so after that it will be available on all major worldwide digital retailers for you lot to listen to and either love or pull to bits!

NEW MATERIAL

I have been writing a shit load of new songs and propose to release three 5 track ep’s between now and November, and also re-release Dance down the local as a double a-side with a new Christmas song Ive written AND (takes a breath)  A 2nd 13 track studio album early in 2013, that is of course if we haven’t all been wiped out by a huge atrocity predicted by a race who lived thousands of years ago who thought it was a good idea to sacrifice there own people to stop the gods making it rain so much and then dump their dead bodies directly into their main water source, that is why the Mayans died people… nothing more so be sure on this….. you shall be hearing my second studio album in 2013.

The tour starts in June I’m confirming dates all the time and hoping to do a tour of acoustic venues nationwide starting in July, as well as the full band shows!

Much to do so I’m off……

Much love as always….

GJA   x

Ive had a few emails from people asking for me to explain the meanings behind the songs……

It is titled “fishing with dynamite” because duff said in the studio “dude this tracks are like fishing with dynamite”

‘FISHING WITH DYNAMITE’

My debut album fishing with dynamite is a basically a handful of tracks selected from my pretty large back catalogue of songs that I have written over the past 10 years in my humble home studio.  When I say humble I mean humble! I recorded it totally using Protools version 6.8.1 using a duel input mbox, one of the inputs not working and the other a little noisy.  The mike I used for vocals is a samson co1 from any good music store £40. For the electric guitars I use my Takemine Tan10c and basically route it through an early model korg effects board.  For the piano and synth parts I used a midi keyboard and a sample programme, same for drums all played on the midi keyboard using drum software.

The point of telling you all this? simple….. my entire set up cost me (guitar aside) £250.  Get on ebay! On there you will find a wealth of bargins for the bedroom producer and on youtube you’ll find all the knowledge base you need from all the clever kids all over the world to have you recording tothat level in weeks.  It really is that simple….

Ive gigged for years building up contacts and working relationships with promoters event organisers and fellow musicians all over the country, its only recently ive decided to move it to this level as I feel my songs now can carry the conviction intended and speak from experience, a short one granted but one I have truly lived. All the tracks on the album were selected specifically and pretty much map out my musical and spiritual journey over the past 10 years, and beyond into my childhood.

I have written 3 more albums I feel are much better and keep the story going…. for these you will have to be patient I am recording the next record at this time of writing.  I intend to record and release these three albums over the next 18 month-2 years whilst I continue to write new material and promote the current record and tour it.

In my short 30 years I seen alot, read alot and travelled well.  I feel fishing with dynamite explains key point in my life and significant path changing experiences.

Before I released the record I decided that it would be better not to glam up or re record my home demos, but to release a selection of them as is as they are what they are.  Over the coming years there will be random releases of all of my back catalogue. At some point a 40+ track album will be released of the final lot.

BORN TO BE ALIVE : A simple song about seeing the true path of your life, yet the ties that bind you not letting you achieve it. Experience is a beautiful thing, yet to get it you must live, and living creates ties that we cannot escape too embark on our true path. ironically most of us only see the path with experience, some know from birth, others stumble upon it yet we are all born to be alive.

DAVY JONES : I still remember the day like yesterday when my father came home upset that one of his fellow striking miners had been tragically killed near the entrance to the pit in our village.  There is a bench now in the memory of David Gareth Jones positioned where he tragically died.

HAZEL GREEN EYES: A song about being born into this world growing through it and having your own children and how it all comes full circle whether you choose it or not!

RONNIES SONG: A song I wrote the day after Me and my partner lost our son Ronnie Armstrong.

ABOVE THE NOISE:  At one time if I wasnt sat drinking in my studio I was out at shows playing and nothing seemed to be changing.  The frustration that brought along with meeting famous musicians I idolised who turned out to be complete dicks, aswell as friends (so called) ridiculing what I did, I would still sit there every night dreaming of headlining glastonbury. it is what it is.

CRITICAL MASS:  A song I wrote before I played my first festival.  The whole event was tarnished for me due to personal events around that time which I explain in the chorus. The final verses look to a positive future after a bit of a low time.

OUT OF THIS TOWN:  Whilst in the beetroot kings Chris (who now plays piano for me again, left for a long while to join a different band. This was around the time I decided I was going  to market everything differently as Gary J Armstrong rather than TBK even though things ran the same and still do! When chris left it was on bad terms and I wrote this song out of the frustration of the last conversation we had the first verse is directed at Chris and that I will not go back to ‘The band thing’ the out of this town is me saying I just wanted to bury my head and leave and start all over.

RABBIT HOLE: I remember dropping my partner off at her work, and on the run up to her work there is a road with literally hundreds of rabbit holes.  She mentioned that on the surface they look nothing but underneath there is an intrcate network of tunnels.  This got me thinking about life. Its totally the same.  On the surface it is what it is yes behind the scenes, whatever that means foryou be it spiritual, religious or whatever there are forces at work within these belief systems that work the same way. Or you believe they do.

HEART AND MIND:  This is a song about starting something you were so sure about and then wondering if you were right so much afterwards that it drives you insane! Also how its usually the dreams we set for ourselves that are often the root of all of our feelings of  low spirits. “Theres nothing wrong with your heart or your mind, its the dreams youve had that youve left well behind”

JUST ONE SECOND: I wrote this song after I lost my uncle and my best friend. anyone who has lost someone special can relate to this song.

LAST LOST GENERATION:  I’m sure your getting the feel for this album now! I feel that it is a map of alot of low points in my life! the next album is the High points . LLG is a collective rant of all things that piss me off at this point in my life, and how to move on maybe we need to cut loose the things we have grown to depend on. Get off facebook! Get to gigs! socialise, make a scene, take mobile phones and games consoles off kids! Get them playing outside, give them a guitar! Its also about getting back to the time in my life that was the was most happiest, mum smoking over the frying pan sunday morning while dad played Radio gaga. The smell of a real record shop…. saving pocket money up for weeks for that one record…. real stuff i remember that meant alot to me and still does. A rant basically!!!!!!

ONLY THE LONLIEST: A song about not caring who you shit on to get where you need to be….. but remember the old saying about watching what you say to those you pass on the way up, as you’ll meet them again as you come back down.

Thats basically a summery of the album.

Warmest wishes

GJA

Wow, what more can I say?  Other than a huge thankyou to everyone who has downloaded my Christmas single dance down the local.

If im honest I didnt expect it to chart, and most certainly didnt expect it to get featured on Q magazines website as track of the day!

Again a huge thankyou to everyone who has downloaded the song, please keep sharing the link for download and the video on youtube! lets get it higher!

THE LINK FOR DOWNLOADING THE SONG IS

HERE

Its been a while since ive blogged anything on here, appologies for that as ive been up to my neck in it sorting dates for next year, and promoting the release of my first Christmas single Dance down the local.  If you want to be part of the campaign to try and chart this single this christmas, then please join the ‘facebook page’ for it, to get details on when and where to download it.  Dont misunderstand me i’m in no way gunning for the number 1! (although it would be nice!)  please read the page to see how the slaes of this single will go to help a few very important charities close to my heart.  Whilst im on about charities, please check out this page HERE This the official fundraising donation page of my drummer and good friend Gareth Duffin.  Duff will be doing a 24 hour drumathon, yes 24 hour!!! to raise money for Rudozem street dog rescue  this is one of the charities that will be getting a donation of sales from the christmas single.  I could literally fill a whole blog up writing about this charity, so please click the link and take a look.

So hopefully if the retailers get it right, the single should be at the very least on itunes for the 12th December 17th at the latest.  The reason we dont have a specific date is because it was a very last minute idea to release it, and at this time of year all releases have to be vetted for plagerism, so its takes a while for some to go live, if at all.  This again aiding the Major labels push there way to the top spot.  Us mino’s can but try.

Ive added an extra date to the FWD tour its the 17th December at The Plough near Newark. This show has been added for anyone to attend, its a free show. This place is my ‘local’ so what better place for a live rendition of the Christmas single ‘Dance down the local’ and obviously the full album.  Supports for the evening are my good friends Wes Dolan and Eddie Huntington.  Wes has played a few dates on the tour with me now and we’ll be doing a busking show together nearer Christmas in Mansfield, more details to follow on that.

2012

firstly 2011 has been manic for me.  I was not honestly prepared for what was to happen.  Since Starting this project in March this year playing to empty folk clubs and band nights, I didnt expect that by the end of the year I would be signed and released worldwide, have completed a large UK headline tour selling out venues in Manchester, London, Notts, Cheltenham and Lincoln to name a few, and to have graced the same stage with artists like Frank Turner.  Roller coaster aint the word to be honest.  At the last show in Mansfield I was humbled how many people turned up to pack out the venue, faces from all over I had not seen before.  To hear them all singing back every track off the album was very special, so thankyou all who came to that and all the other shows and who purchased my album.

2012 is going to be very busy indeed.  I plan to do a small solo acoustic tour in March, then Release a single off the second album “thirteen” in April then tour it full band as much as possible throughout the year.  I am already confirmed for a fair few festivals next year including some mainstage appearences.  I will be adding dates all the time through 2012 so please make sure you check back here to the gigs page to see when im playing near you.  Come down to a show and say hello, we’ll have a beer.

So remember please add yourself to the facebook page for the single HERE and also the main page for my music HERE.

Again Thankyou to everyone who made 2011 a very special year for me and the lads, we are forever in your debt.  Hopefully we will see you all again next year.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year……..

Peace out….

GJA

With a very tired looking Takemine and after a bout of illness the ‘Fishing With Dynamite’ tour will conclude in my hometown, Mansfield Nottinghamshire Saturday 19th November at The Fairways Bar, Mansfield Woodhouse.   I’m hoping the many friends that I’ve picked up along the road will make their way down to what promises to be a great night of music.  Supporting me on the night is my longtime good friend and ex Beetroot Kings Drummer Benny Haynes and  Wes Dolan, talented singer and songwriter who recently signed to an American based label – long awaited acknowledgement of pure hard work and dedication to his craft.

Right on to more festive news…..

The Wombles are releasing a Christmas track!…… But more importantly I am.  If grown men can don fur suits to get you into the spirit of Christmas then I’m sure I can do my bit along with the band.  True to form the single is my view on Christmas and the music which tends to dominate it.  Another reason to head down to the end of tour gig in Mansfield will be to witness the first live performance of ‘Dance Down The Local’.   All in all it’s a good little tune which also will do some good for a charity which was brought to my attention by Gareth Duffin, my drummer and good friend.  I plan to donate a percentage of the sales to the Rudozem Street Dog Rescue in Bulgaria www.streetdogrescue.com - this dog rescue needs our contributions to keep it running in order to offer a safe home and food to these abandoned and abused dogs, lest we remember the ever used phrase as this time of year….a dog is for life and not just for Christmas.   When we forget this it is charities such as Rudozem that are left to pick up the pieces.

And here it is……the artwork for the Christmas single ‘Dance Down The Local’ produced by Shaun Milburn.

Image provided by Shaun Milburn

Shaun has provided me with the background on this picture and why he chose it:

“When Gary asked if I could provide the artwork for the single ‘Dance Down The Local’ I began searching the internet for Yule-tide and festive images that would encapsulate Christmas; And whilst there are lots out there, nothing quite attached itself to the feeling of the song which for me, upon every listen transports me back to a place where I can only recall happy memories, and family times. 

So instead I chose a picture of my Grandparents taken around Christmas in 1980 (so I’m told!) as this totally encapsulates what the song is about for me, and I’m privileged enough to have this opportunity to express it.  For family and for friends, for laughing and for crying, and for remembering all of those closest to us who are no longer with us.  Good luck with the song Guys! xx”

The release date for the single is to be confirmed by my label very soon so keep checking back for updates or follow me at @GJA32 where I’ll be keeping you informed plus lots of whining about the affects of Carlsberg the day after.

Gaz

Well its been a busy few weeks here!  Currently setting up the release of my first Christmas single which will be out at… you guessed it, Christmas.  It’s a single with 1 b-side.  You will have noticed that ive had to cancel a couple of dates recently due to illness.  York was cancelled, Hull is cancelled and so is Wales.  Ive had a few health problems I wont go into now but im pleased to say im getting over it now.

The second studio album’s release date has been set April 2nd 2012, currently in recording the final sessions, more about that in later posts.

You may have read on my Facebook and twitter page that we tragically and suddenly lost a fan and a friend at the weekend Martin Doig.  Our thoughts are with all his family rest in peace Doigy from Myself, Grez, Chris, Dan and Duff. x

The final Edit of the new video LAST LOST GENERATION was finished at the weekend and Ive dedicated this video to the memory of Martin……

So up and onwards to the very very couple of months ahead,  more tour dates added very soon and more posts to come about the Christmas release which I hope if goes to plan with all the marketing in place, will chart and put this on the map.

Peace out

GJA

Hi Everyone,

Just a very quick note to say that due some personal issues I wont be playing on Thursday night at York Fibbers supporting Crazy Arm. Im sorry if you were hoping to see me, not having much luck health wise of late! over the worst now……. Looking to sort another date with the promoter very soon in York.

GJA

So another weekends filming  has brought amazing results thanks to my good friend friend, Director and film maker Shaun Milburn…….

Cheers Terry.

Here is the official video for out of this town.  A true inde video recorded for £4  Many thanks to director and film maker Shaun Milburn.

Hello!

Ok,  it has been as the title says a pretty amazing weekend for me.  I’m very tired to say the least but my god was it worth it.

It all started Thursady night at the Roadmender Northampton……….

A huge thankyou to Frank Turner for asking me to support him at the show.  I was overwhelmed by the response from all of you who were there.  Im sure you will agree it was an amazing night, I totally enjoyed myself and Frank finished off as usual in awesome style.  Even though i was only playing with Chris my whole band was there with me including my manager Sarah and some special close friends.  We finished the set had a few beers with Frank and then headed off the the hotel with the intension of getting properly fucking drunk.  About 330am our message to calm down was clear when the hotel manager belted on the door saying it was a little late now.  How dare he interupt me as i was 7 songs into the new album acoustic, showing my band the new stuff set currently for release in February 2012.  So we all hit the sack, rising at 8am for breakfast and the heavy headed drive to london for the second show.  We had an ace day in london seeing the sites topped off perfectly when we flagged down london cabbie Chris Thrower.  We’d never met chris before we were in his cab for nearly half an hour rolling around laughing at his stories of picking up old gangsters with mental health issues! amazing how you meet people isnt it….. spent half an hour with chris, he’s already coming to our next show in london in November and has lined himself up as our official shapperone.  Dublin castle doors at 730pm, we were on at 930 full band, and what a show it was. awesome.

We finished the show and headed up the M1 to our 3rd show midday in the acoustic tent at mychoone festival.  Me and Chris walked in at 11:30am and the place was totally dead!  We did a quick line check ourselves as no engineer was available and headed off  what was simply the best fucking breakfast crepe ive ever eaten! we headed back around 12pm and the place was starting to fill up nicely.  We played about an hour sold some more albums did some signings then quickly off to the next show at 4:30pm at the Walesby real ale festival.

By this time I noticed my voice was failing a little due to lack of sleep and too much beer! so I decided the best thing to do was get wrecked on maid marion real ale.  We finished the show at walesby and headed back to Derbyshire as we were on full band in the big top at Mychoone at 10:30 am sunday morning.

Unfortionatley 35 mins into our full band set my voice totally went and we had to pull the show.  Turns out ive got an infection in my throat which now im on tablets for and it is healing nicely, hopfully just in time for this weekend.  I also had to pull the afternoon show sunday at Mansfield.  So appologies to anyone who hoping to see me there.  fear not i’ll be back there very soon.

So a bit of a depressing end to a great weekend, but we all get ill and theres not much we can do about that.

I’d just like to thank all the new followers on twitter and all the people who have supported me this weekend by buying an album.  I do hope you are enjoying what you are hearing, and hope to see you all again at a show very soon.

Check out the LIVE SHOWS page on this site to see when im playing near you.  Tickets are still available for my headline show at Manchester Night and day cafe on the 16th September.  This is full band and we’ll be playing the album in full.  There are some fantastic supports with us that night make sure you check them out its going to be a great night.

Ok, I must shoot off……. i’ll see you all very soon.

As always

MUCH LOVE!

GJA

ps

For those who had pictures taken i’ll be uploading them to my facebook page very soon for you to get hold of.  To say the whole GJA thing has only been officially going 6 months I seem to be making up ground much quicker than any other project ive done in the past, for that I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.