Aikido, Skateboards, Snowboards, Yoga and a spot of Parkour once in a blue moon. Comedy. I am a comic. Phewf, how hard was that to say? I feel like I'm stepping out of some sort of comedy closet... But as my friend Oli was once good enough to say to me 'Ben, you have to be a comic - you're shit at everything else'.
People who can think for themselves. That's always a good start. People who don't like being told what to do. People who like to make their own mistakes. People who are capable of observing that every single academic institution on earth is concerned with subservience first, ability second. People who get my fucking jokes... Nina Conti. I'm pretty sure I could hold it together if I met anyone else on the planet. Good Lord, she's amazing - I would be left giggling like a twattish school boy. Albeit a drunk one...
In no particular order then - the Pixies, Modest Mouse, At The Drive In, Mars Volta, AC/DC, Motley Crue, Metallica, Lamb, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Iron Maiden, Dilated Peoples, the People Under The Stairs, Big L, Talib Kweli, Minor Threat, Bad Brains, Anti Flag, Incubus, Lacuna Coil, the Hellacopters, the Donnas, Jimi Hendrix, Air, Rob Dougan, French Hiphop, Sabbath, the Smiths, the Cure, Judas Priest, Alice In Chains, Jamiroquai, Tool, Pantera, Bad Religion, Gangstarr, Nas, Soul Coughing, the Scorpions, A Tribe Called Quest, Pennywise, Millencolin, Bush, Social Distortion, The Peacocks, Veruca Salt (and Nina Gordon's solo stuff - she is officially sex on legs) Helmet, Handsome, ZZ Top, Joe Satriani, Black Label Society, Zero 7, Method Man, the Prodigy, Roots Manuva and Juliana Hatfield. Oh, and Jim Crows Grave, I suppose... Then there's songs I hear on skate/snowboard vids and instantly love with no knowledge of who they are - see Electro Convulsive Therapy. If there is any justice they could be to the present what Massive Attack were to the nineties. I can't believe I found Handy With Shovels on here! Anyone who's ever seen Brian Lotti's part on Planet Earth's 'Now N Later' will know what I'm banging on about! OG steez, kid.
Le Pacte Des Loups, Matrix (obviously), Before Sunrise/Sunset, Garden State, the Taxi films (french, NOT involving Queen Latifah at any point), Heat, Collateral, Amelie, Clerks, Spinal Tap, American Beauty and quite recently, a rekindled appreciation of Watership Down. Word.
Family Guy, American Dad, Red Dwarf, Modern Toss, Monkey Dust , Black Books, Spaced, Green Wing, Scrubs and virtually anything Chris Morris is involved in. Not Nathan Barley though. Wasn't really feeling that. Youtube-wise, I've been overdosing on Nevermind The Buzzcocks and Robot Chicken.
Any and all Noam Chomsky; Glen Duncan's 'I, Lucifer' is very funny, need to read more of him; Motley Crue's 'the Dirt' is fucking awesome; Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman and Frank Miller in the comics department. Have absolutely caned Preacher recently, God it's good. Props to Tim C for lending them. We can now stick messrs Ennis and Dillon on the above list. Vagabond!! Ohhhhh! How fucking good is this?! Inoue Takehiko is a very clever man, roll on vol.25 in October. These things have the same effect on me that Lost and Prison Break do on others.
Not sure i have heroes, but if i did they would be Bill Hicks, Noam Chomsky and any human being who dares to dream. And/Or take the piss because you know that's how most dreams are realised. Preacher's Jesse Custer if it's possible to have a fictional character as a hero. Actually, he's more of a muse for me... I love this, it's from the foreword John Lahr wrote to 'Love All The People' - 'He was what only a great comedian can be for any age: an enemy of boundaries, a disturber of the peace, a bringer of insight and of joy, a comic distillation of his own rampaging spirit'. Rest in peace, Bill. Stay fearless.