Crazy Christmas Crackers

Good Lord it's the end of 2009 already. So this month has been super busy. The most exciting thing though is that I've produced a track that'll be played every night for 8 weeks in LA CLIQUE at The Roundhouse, London (on the very same stage Shirley Bassey appeared not 3 weeks ago).

The fabulous Le Gateau Chocolat (impossible to describe, impossible to resist - look her up) is appearing in the show from tonight until 3rd January 2010 singing, amongst other numbers in that inimitable super bass opera voice, a re-imagining of the perenial Walking In The Air. Now, before you roll your eyes and switch off, imagine a larger-than-life, black, opera bass, in full drag, dressed as a gigantic snowball in 400 yards of net curtain, flying 20 feet in the air, singing Walking In The Air, to my arrangement of the song (put your head phones on and hit the play button at the end of this post). Aled Jones, eat out thy heart. I've worked with Le Gateau for many years now and even though we lead wildly different musical lives, we've grown both artistically and together, so much in the years since we met at uni.

The Puppy That Ate Christmas has taken another exciting leap and it looks like it may have walkies not only in Christmas 2010 but also a tour booking for 2011, which is brilliant news. More details to come still, but very excited.

I've also started work with a new collaborator on a musical set around the flying industry. I find it really inspiring to work ideas through with another creative and director & lighting designer Ed Burnside is about as creative as they come. More news on this as it develops.

Work for Disney has reached an all time climax with some of the team working 17 hour days at the moment, but all worth it as I'll soon be whisked off to America for the recording session of my compositions for the Sing It Pro section of the game. It's for the next video game in the Sing It series and it's with a HUGE singing star, but annoyingly if I told you any names I'd be killed by lawyers and also fired. But all will be revealed soon.

My studio is also currently prototyping a new game concept which will lead the way in music gaming next year. It's really exciting stuff and the best part is seeing the old ways of game development being thrown out the window and more creatively demanding, artistically authentic methods have taken their place, with proper musical guts and totally new audio design at the core. Shut up Jamm. This is one of the things wot's inspired me this monf though, innit.

Meanwhile, the Kinky Boots project continues to take pigeon steps forward, but while that drags its heels (genius) there's a demo from it on my Composer page - the second song on the green media player, called Red, where Lola (the drag act from Soho explains to the provincial bootmaker Charlie that he's no longer making boots, he's making "two-and-a-half feet of irresistible tubular sex".

I hadn't noticed, but drag's really finding me this year, isn't it? Dont' panic, there's no danger of me squeezing into a frock and belting out showtunes anytime soon. Thoughtful pause....

17 March 2010 - I'll be doing an extravaganza concert in the Claygate Music Festival, click the link for booking details. It'll be a wonderful, civilised show for the folk of the Surrey village where I grew up. My parents actually organise the whole thing - some 20 concerts and events over the month of March. It really is quite a feat, I'm sure they're meant to have retired by now. It would be great to see some familiar faces there, but it usually sells quite fast, so get booked up soon. It'll be a programme of popular musical theatre and opera all the way, with a few of my own songs from things I've been working on recently.

So that's my news - Pete and I will be spending our first Christmas at our new home on Telscombe Cliffs (just outside Brighton) with some good friends and good wines and good foods and I'm really hoping for snow this year, if just for the pictures on the beach. It's been a ridiculous year, never worked so hard in all my life, moved house, renovated half of it, been dragged through drama after drama, but all in all, I feel lucky.

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