Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Feb 9, 2012, 4:34 am
From the 13th-17th February unemployed young men from the multiply deprived Bromford estate in east Birmingham will be working alongside the ‘urban spiritual artist’ Mohammed ‘aerosol’ Ali, The Hub youth centre and Dr Chris Shannahan of the University of Birmingham to design and spray-...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Feb 7, 2012, 2:52 pm
I’ve been aware of a few stories circulating recently lamenting the decline of rock music. Some of it is seriously apocalyptic stuff, for instance The Independent ran an article today pointing out that ‘only three of 2010's 100 bestselling singles were guitar-driven’. That’s pretty bleak. Bu...
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Helen posted an article on The Omega Course - Feb 5, 2012, 3:16 pm
I thought it only polite to ‘check in’ to wish you a belated Happy New Year, dear void, and provide an update on our progress. Or ‘to leave more breadcrumbs’, as Luke often says. Temperatures have been around the zero to -3 mark for the past week and it has been snowing outside for the...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jan 27, 2012, 4:02 pm
Back in July 2011 I stumbled across the mesmerising video on Youtube called ‘Video Games’ by Lana Del Rey. Haunting is a word that has been overused to describe it, but it really is. I fell instantly in love with the melody, Lana’s voice and the kooky imagery in the video and posted it whereve...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jan 17, 2012, 4:44 pm
Imagine a circus like no other. A twisted circus some might say. Include a ... to experience a unique phenomenon – a twisted circus – whilst enjoying the city’s ... and spectacular fire performers, whilst a twisted ringmaster takes centre stage as Spiceal ... 28th January with an array of ...
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Helen posted an article on The Omega Course - Dec 4, 2011, 2:23 pm
Regular readers will know that I abhor hot drinks, particularly coffee. And this is often to the detriment of my social life. I have lamented about this before and nothing has changed. Perhaps abhor is too strong, I wouldn’t say that I hate coffee, more like it hates me. My nervous system i...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 29, 2011, 10:51 am
Turn off the Sun are proud to announce that they are to share the stage with internationally renowned rock band Funeral For A Friend. Funeral for a Friend are a Welsh   post-hardcore band, from Bridgend. Formed in 2001, the...
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Helen posted an article on The Omega Course - Nov 20, 2011, 5:47 am
So, the past year? As you can guess, the ‘educational’ plan didn’t exactly work out. We had good intentions to educate the nation, but if anything we only succeeded in withdrawing deeper into ourselves. Luke got a bit ‘weird’, became very unpredictable and started obsessing over appr...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Oct 6, 2011, 1:16 pm
Below are two new videos from Turn Off The Sun for your delectation. Both videos were shot by our good friends at Future As Technology Tells Film (FATTfilm.co.uk). The first is a quick edit of the EP launch night for those of you that missed out on an excellent night. The song is Cardiac from ...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 23, 2011, 3:48 pm
Apologies, guys, for the radio silence, but August has been a crazy-busy month for Turn Off The Sun. The first week of the month was spent at the legendary The Lodge Studios in Northampton recording our forthcoming EP 'Armour Plated Tongue'. You can download the single ‘Let The Right One Inâ...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 10, 2011, 4:58 am
If you are an avid foodie or wine lover then please check out this new blog written by Lloyd Petersen, my very good friend, fervent oenophile and proprietor of Chez Lloyd. Lloyd will be documenting his travels around the country eating and drinking at various restaurants in the UK (and I expect far...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jun 22, 2011, 1:04 pm
2 lovers. 1 diamond. A thief. A curse. A classic film noir movie coming straight from late night Paris in the 1960s. And you. You are the spectator, but also the actor. Only you will discover the secrets of The Black Diamond. Set to be this summer’s must-attend event, Stella Artoi...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jun 12, 2011, 7:24 am
A friend of mine, Shelley, is a social care worker based in a Birmingham community care home supporting people with learning difficulties and she is helping to organise a charity event that will be held at Cannon Hill Park in Birmingham on the 9th October 2011. Shelley is hoping to raise enough don...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jun 1, 2011, 2:03 pm
If you’re a sucker for all things vintage *raises hand* then you’ll love this… Head to Birmingham’s Pavilions shopping centre on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th June for the ultimate shopping experience. To complement the summer’s hottest high street trends from the likes of Hobbs, Mon...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - May 28, 2011, 1:00 pm
Visitors to Bullring were today taken on a whimsical adventure through the beautiful, enchanting and exhilarating trends of summer as The Show: Dolls House arrived at the centre of Birmingham. Thousands of shoppers gathered on the balconies overlooking the elaborate Dolls House set on the Lowe...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - May 23, 2011, 3:00 pm
Sit back and prepare to be taken on a whimsical adventure through romantic flowing fabrics and textures. Revel in colours that explore every shade of the rainbow. And immerse yourself in some of the most enchanting trends for the season ahead as The Show: Dolls House arrives at the UK’s most visit...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - May 23, 2011, 2:51 pm
A new organ vid is up! It’s another Lady Gaga one - a cover of Judas (simply because I’m inundated with requests from all the little monsters!). I’ve received comments that the video camera that I use doesn’t pick up the sound very well, so this time I’m using a good quality mic. So no vid...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - May 15, 2011, 7:52 am
I've been receiving phone calls from scammers claiming to be calling from Microsoft on a daily basis now. The caller tells me that I have a problem with my computer (a virus, malicious software or the computer is simply performing too slowly) and I need to follow his/her instructions in order to fix...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - May 2, 2011, 6:41 am
I’ve heard a great deal about the blood, sweat and tears that Turn Off The Sun put into recording the Montesa EP at Montesa Audio studies in Spain last October (just before I joined them) and I believed them until I saw this video of Andy (vocals and bass) trying to break the world record for the ...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Apr 16, 2011, 12:41 pm
A mass Thriller flashmob took place at 1pm this afternoon in Victoria Square in Birmingham city centre. The event was promoted via thrillerinthecity.com and instructional dance videos and free dance lessons were provided for members of the public wishing to take part. Flashmob-wise the event w...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Mar 13, 2011, 8:49 am
We all love a good public breakdown and Charlie Sheen’s recent antics have certainly stoked the fires of media frenzy with sound bites from his ‘The Today Show’ interview littering the internet, spoof vids appearing on Youtube and #winning #fastball and #tigerblood hashtags popping up all over...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Feb 28, 2011, 2:45 pm
It’s finally here! *drum roll* Ladies and Gentlemen, Turn Off The Sun are proud to present the highly anticipated music video for ‘Walking Wounded’. As explained in my previous post The Making of Walking Wounded, the filming took place at the world famous Winspers Kickboxing Gym...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Feb 20, 2011, 7:31 am
Red Nose Day is just around the corner and I’m braced for an evening of distress and upset. No, my sadness has nothing to do with the unrelenting scenes of starving children in third world countries or disadvantaged youngsters in the UK. I’ll be breaking out the tissues because the best comics w...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jan 30, 2011, 7:51 am
If you’re thinking that the blog has been quiet throughout January then let me reassure you that I’m still here! I’ve been buried away in a practice room for most of this month, fiddling with cables, knobs and buttons and trying to find the right sound for my first gig with Turn Off The Sun (t...
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Helen posted an article on The Omega Course - Jan 30, 2011, 6:27 am
Apologies for the lack of updates. I had a crisis of conscious and decided not to continue writing. I even hovered over the ‘delete blog’ button a few times. I don’t know why, I think I was worried that I would identify myself, or I would write something that would pinpoint my location and the...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jan 7, 2011, 8:39 am
Yesterday lunchtime I was munching a sandwich and trawling through my Twitter timeline when I spotted a comment that made me smile and prompted me to hit the reply button. The reply was, I thought, an inoffensive quotation from Oscar Wilde that was slightly sarcastic but, given that the author of th...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Jan 2, 2011, 4:47 am
Belated Happy New Year everyone! Here’s hoping that Santa bought you everything that you wanted, family arguments were kept to a minimum, no-one was sick through food/alcohol intoxication and your Christmas/New Year week was enjoyable, if not tolerable. In order to celebrate the rather sudden dawn...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Dec 24, 2010, 2:59 am
Happy Christmas one and all! I hope you are warm and well and sat beneath the Christmas tree busily wrapping presents in readiness for the big day. Who am I kidding? You’re either fast asleep in bed with the flu, desperately running around the shops in sub-zero temperatures trying to find that las...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Dec 7, 2010, 11:27 am
Photo: Rob Lawrence @ 616 PhotographyHalloween 2010 was a particularly scary time of year for me and it had nothing to do with ghosties and ghoulies. It was particularly scary because on 31st October this year I joined a Birmingham-based band called Turn Off The Sun as their new keyboard player. Now...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 28, 2010, 6:37 am
My godmother’s son bought my mother and I a voucher for a Deluxe Makeover and Photo Shoot for Two at New ID Birmingham back in February. Mindful that the voucher was due to expire in December, we booked our appointment with New ID, packed two bulging holdalls of clothing and accessories and headed...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 28, 2010, 4:34 am
Christmas shoppers in Birmingham are in for a festive surprise from this year’s Bullring Christmas decorations. This year the centre’s decorations have been created by the local community from images, artwork and photography uploaded to the Bullring Art Project. Two 2D installations, loca...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 12, 2010, 2:40 pm
On Friday afternoon I was set with the challenge of writing some song lyrics by Dave Stewart on Twitter. Having been encouraged by Dave to take up song-writing in an earlier episode, I decided that it was time that I took his encouragement seriously and tried my hand once again at putting pen to pap...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 5, 2010, 10:39 am
So here it is… the new Limited Edition Glimmer Absolut bottle! Having commended the beauty of Absolut design in my previous post on the forthcoming new bottle launch, I remain stalwart in my praise now that I have a grasp on the new Limited Edition Glimmer bottle itself. The classically crystal cu...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Nov 3, 2010, 6:08 am
One for the gents now… Movember is upon us once again! No, that’s not a typo. It’s that time of year when men are encouraged to grow a moustache to raise awareness and funds for The Prostrate Cancer Charity (TPCC, the UK’s leading prostrate cancer charity) and Everyman (Institute of Cancer R...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Oct 31, 2010, 4:38 pm
I’m an fan of Absolut Vodka for a number of reasons (aside from the obvious!). Their advertising is consistently uber-cool and their design inspiration is mindblowing. So I was excited to hear that to celebrate the launch of the new Limited Edition Glimmer Absolut Bottle (which is a thing of beau...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Oct 30, 2010, 5:35 am
It’s that spine-tingling, chain-rattling time of the year again folks! I hope that your pumpkin carving and other Halloween party plans are going well and your doors and windows are adequately bolted to stop the little buggers ringing your doorbell for candy every five seconds. In the true ...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Oct 8, 2010, 5:09 am
If you ever worry about how to continue the legacy of your awesomeness after you have shuffled off this mortal coil, then I may well have found the perfect send-off for you. UK-based company And Vinyly will press your cremated ashes into a vinyl recording playing a track of your choice, ...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Oct 1, 2010, 6:29 am
My ‘condescending magazine title of the year’ trophy is awarded to Just As Beautiful, the UK’s new lifestyle magazine aimed at women between sizes 14 and 20. Just As Beautiful. How painfully patronising is that? Why not call the magazine You’re Not Fat and Ugly. Honest. Or how about You’r...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Sep 28, 2010, 7:13 am
Wow, what a weekend for fashion in Birmingham! 15,000 Bullring shoppers watched as The Show unfolded on a dramatic catwalk located in the Bullring’s lower West Mall over the weekend. I was lucky enough to be seated on the front row for the press preview of The Show on Friday and boy – I was no...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Sep 21, 2010, 2:35 pm
As if you need reminding… Birmingham is bracing itself to be hit by an explosion of glamour as Style Birmingham Live comes to town from 24-26 September. There will be a number of fashion and beauty events taking place across the city centre with fabulous catwalk shows held at the Town Hall a...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Sep 19, 2010, 4:07 am
The perfect gig jacket is an elusive creature. Elusiveness, I would argue, comparable with Bigfoot, the Unicorn and the Loch Ness Monster. I’ve been hunting for a new gig jacket for months now and blamed my inability to locate one on the high street on the Spring/Summer season. But now the Autumn/...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Sep 9, 2010, 6:52 am
This high street fashion store is taking gangsta speak to a whole new level...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 31, 2010, 2:43 pm
Stop already with the black/grey/brown jersey and vest type maxi dresses!! They’re shapeless, unflattering, dingy and NO-ONE IS WEARING THEM!! And don’t think that stripes and tie-dye patterns can save them. These dresses are only suitable for emos with colour phobias and issues with showing th...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 31, 2010, 1:59 pm
You’ll never guess how ‘paper clips’ translates into French…. Now that says ‘trombones’, right?!?
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 29, 2010, 6:35 am
Once a year, take all your clothes out of the wardrobe and return them with the hangers reversed (pointing towards you rather than towards the back of the wardrobe). As you pull the clothes out to wear them, return them to the wardrobe with the hangers facing the right way round. At the end of the y...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 29, 2010, 6:24 am
Some useful tips here. And the 'stick your remote to your head' thing works with car alarms too. Try standing a distance from your car, putting the alarm on/off remote against the side of your head and pressing the button. Apparently the oral cavity in your skull amplifies the signal. Awesome...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 27, 2010, 7:21 am
Bullring stunned shoppers today with a unique spectacle to let them know that The Show is coming to town this September. A contortionist shocked shoppers by appearing from an abandoned trunk on Bullring’s mall, whilst a master of ceremonies took to the floor to tell shoppers exactly what the...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 22, 2010, 4:18 pm
The academic study of theology and religion has taken a bullet recently. Cuts in higher education have led to reports of staff reductions in the School of Philosophy, Theology and Religion at The University of Birmingham and the planned closure of Bangor University's School of Theology and Religious...
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 20, 2010, 3:40 pm
I’m not a massive Star Wars geek but this silent film version of the Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker face-off in The Empire Strikes Back complete with jerky projection speed and dramatic piano accompaniment made me smile. George Lucas should re-edit and re-release the whole series like this!
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Helen posted an article on The Geek Muse - Aug 20, 2010, 10:23 am
There is no doubt that Gok Wan has made revolutionary improvements in the body confidence of both men and women across the UK. Plus his Twitter feed makes me giggle at least once a day. So I do not intend to trigger any kind of backlash against him and his fantastic ‘munter-to-stunner’ stylings....
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