Welcome to PARACHUTES AND FLYING MACHINES, a blog set up and run by London indie-rock 5-piece PREGO where you'll find out what we've been up to and what we are doing next. This is also where we'll let you know about what music, films, books, art, people and cool places we've encountered recently. We'd like to hear from you too, so let us know what we are missing out on!

Monday 3 May 2010

dan demos


A bank holiday at home on your own means only one thing!... Guitary guitary, demo demos!! Woop!

Saturday 24 April 2010

Manhattan


So it turns out everyone runs around central park anti-clockwise! Literally everyone! Thousands of everyone! It was like running against a marathon. It certainly added a little edge to the experience, yet none seemed particularly grumpy about it. Maybe they could tell we were british! I also saw a racoon. Nice. In terms of that pizza, I forgot to take my camera out with me! Imagine if you will the biggest pizza you can... no bigger than that, now consider it all in my belly!!! Yeah he did! Much running equals much munchin! (See photo of another occasion regarding a massive chocolate ice cream sunday).

Since i have been galavanting in manhattan I am aware that my data collection has gone a little awry. For this i apologise, I'm quite sure you all miss it. Rest assured however I will get back on track as soon as physics will allow me.

For now here is a random list of statistics; Carpet trodden, unknown. Coffee drunk, 1-1000 (decent coffee, approx. 3). Bridges walked over, 1 (Brooklyn). No. of inflight movies watched, 4. Time spent canoeing, 0. Number of cardigans worn, 2.


Wednesday 21 April 2010

'Storm the Charts' Voting Re-Opens

Hey Guys,

'Storm the Charts' Voting Re-Opens
Hey Guys,The Storm the Chart voting has re-opened, the voting rules have been changed due to some bands cheating in the last round, so you can no longer find a specific band. Nevertheless it's still a great campaign so support independent music by voting at http://stormthecharts.com

CheersPrego

Project 10 Newspaper interview

Check out this interview about Prego at our good friends Project 10 newspaper. You can find it online at http://www.slideshare.net/planbstudio/project10-newspaper-march. Thanks to Steve Price at Plan-B studio for asking some great questions about the inner workings of the band....

Monday 19 April 2010

dans in NY!


So I'm in NY city!
The weather is fine, the company is finnerer, and our hotel room is higher than i would ever care to be in a man made structure! I feel a trifle out of sorts! (see picture). The room is a shoe box, yet the classiest shoe box I've stayed in to date!

I'm now going to run around central park! Woop!

I will post again soon, probably with a massive pizza!

d

Friday 16 April 2010

New Prego Photos


Check out more photos on our Facebook and Myspace pages!

We're through to the 3rd round of Storm the Charts!

A big thank you to everyone for making the effort to vote for us in our Storm the charts Campaign! It was a sprint finish but we just scraped through by about 20 votes!
We're going to need even more support for the next round as the competition hots up so start spreading the word now and we really do have a shot at making the UK top 40 chart!

Thank you!

Prego X

Wednesday 14 April 2010

YOU GOT US THROUGH ROUND 1....NOW PLEASE HELP WITH ROUND 2!!!!

Thanks for your round 1 votes, we stormed it! So here's how to help us now;

1. Follow this link - http://stormthecharts.com/

2. Click on All Polls

3. Go to Poll 250

4. Vote Prego!!!!!!!!


There are 4 rounds this week and if you guys get us through all of them, the ...next stage is the Top 40, so please keep voting,


Thank You!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday 7 April 2010

Jonsi: "Go"

Okay so I know this is the second post I've done in as many days but I just had to say how amazing Jonsi's new album "Go" is! It really is the most beautiful sounding record so far this year and as with Sigur Ros ( although it is undeniably different) there are countless goosebump moments, meaning the hair on the back of you neck will rarely be sitting still!




"Go" was co-produced by Peter Katis (Interpol, The National) and among the collaborators is Nico Muhly (protege of Philip Glass) who arranged and orchestrated all the songs making this a truly quality piece of work.

The live show comes to our shores on May 26th and 27th at the Kentish Town Forum and then again on July 18th at Latitude Festival in Suffolk.

Check it out at http//:jonsi.com/go it will make you smile!

Simon

Tuesday 6 April 2010

Efterklang "Magic Chairs"

Although this album was released over a month ago, it really does deserve a mention. Efterklang are Danish and Prego have a penchant for Scandinavian music so it is only fitting that we try and introduce as many people to this amazing band as possible!



The band are on tour in this country from April 20th and play Shepherds bush empire on April 21st so get tickets if you still can!

Check them out at www.myspace.com/efterklang I guarantee you won't be disappointed!

If you like the record also check out their previous album "Parades" released in 2007. Great stuff!

Simon


w/ending 21/3


chord of the week C played as a G shape on the eighth fret (it's a cracker)


tune of the week You are the blood, Sufjan Stevens

distance run 52.55km

time spent running given up on the battery......

going for the joy of running instead.

days until 10K run 7 days


style focus suitable footwear has become an issue

facial hair status un slick rethinking this category since end of Christmas beard

work:music ratio (hrs) 0:18


question of the week what does it take???


film of the week Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold


finish the lyric "I love winners when they cry, losers when they try......"

quote of the week "Is it just the electrocution issue that you"re concerned about?"

book being read Republic, Plato


Monday 22 March 2010

Dan’s Blog

weeks ending 14th and 21st March

Mono @ the Scala

15/3/10


There are few things that render me breathless. Mono is one of them....I'll leave it at that.


Simon and Dan @ Mono

w/ending 14/3


chord of the week "this one" + demonstration


tune of the week two doves, Dirty Projectors

distance run 38.98km

time spent running given up on the battery......

going for the joy of running instead.

days until 10K run 14 days


style focus band fringe synchronisation

(see photo above)

facial hair status slick

work:music ratio (hrs) 32 : 8


question of the week why, on a quiet road, does a car al ways come to the

junction just as you want to cross???


film of the week Synecdoche new york

Charlie Kaufman


finish the lyric "something's happened in the attic...."

quote of the week "I want sympathy, not solutions."

book being read Republic, Plato






Thursday 18 March 2010

Listen Again on BBC Introducing

If you missed it, the lovely Graeme Mac called it hand on heart the best album he'd heard so far in 2010, listen here 6mins 50 in

Album Track Exclusive on BBC Introducing Tonight!

Hey Guys,

Graeme Mac and Richard Haugh will be giving an exclusive airing of the opening track from our forthcoming album 'Start Stop'.

'My Current State (is your latest objective)' will be played during their BBC Introducing show tonight on Radio Suffolk (95.5FM, 104.6FM and on BBC iplayer) between 7-8pm, so tune in and let them know what you think!

Nice one,

Prego

Sunday 14 March 2010

Dan’s Blog

Dan’s Blog


week ending 7/3/10


chord of the week

first four bars of My Iron Lung, Radiohead,

tune of the week

Moonlight, Mono.

distance run

time spent running

days until 10K run

19.31km

watch battery run out; still on “to do” list.

20days

style focus

turn-up margin consistency is a concern (trousers).

facial hair status

likely to scrape her face off (2 days unshaven).

work : music ratio (hrs)

24 : 15

question of the week

How many roads must a man walk down before you can call him an accomplished hiker?

film of the week

Three colours blue, Krzysztof Kieslowski.

finish the lyric

“I think I’m bigger than this sound. I think I’m bigger than this sound”

quote of the week

“Listening takes effort.”

book being read

Republic. Plato.

Tuesday 9 March 2010

Sneak Preview Review of the Album

Hey Guys,

The lovely Jonathan Barnes has posted some lovely words in the form of the first official album review. Made us feel all warm inside!

Edd

Friday 5 March 2010

DAN'S BLOG

Dan’s Blog

So... This is my first blog! How exciting! Over time it will mostly be happening in the form of lists, questions, data, hopefully culminating in many different forms of charts and graphs. But here is an initial note in order to get the 'blogging ball' rolling.

My primary aim\hope for blogging in the for mentioned manner is to see how the accumulation of data and various kinds of information (for example carbohydrate consumption for the week) can establish weather certain aspects of existence (in this case my own existence) could somehow benefit from the measuring of everyday tasks, habits, preferences, and assumptions. I even hope to find that these 'study logs' or if you will 'study blogs' observe patterns that might point to a new, previously unseen sense of, dare I say, 'meaning', (if meaning, is indeed calculable by the collection of simple data) as it applies to what I might usually assume to be a particularly unordered, shabby, very confused attempt at my existence.


Be sure to know however, I am not a mathematician, statistician or a scientist. I'm dan best. Sure I've read a few books, but hey I am not attempting to reduce the complexities of our momentary fleeting experience on this beautiful earth to a few blots of ink on paper or pixels on a screen. That I'm quite sure is not possible. Yet if I can glean a few coherent glimpses of progress or un progress because I took the time to record a few habitual details, then that would be in itself progress!

So here's to hoping, (with your input here and there) I can kick that 'blogging ball', into the back of the net!!!


chord of the week

opening chord to ‘california’ by Low

tune of the week

Zebra, Teen Dream, BEACH HOUSE

distance run

time spent running

days until 10K run

14.74km

watch battery run out; add to “to do” list.

27 days

style focus

“I like my little boots”

facial hair status

n/a

work : music ratio (hrs)

16 : 13

question of the week

Just how clever is my new mac?

film of the week

fargo, Coen brothers

finish the lyric

“What the water wants is hurricanes.......”

quote of the week

It’s because of wonder both then and now that man first began to philosophise.’

book being read

God’s undertaker, has science buried God, John C Lennox.






Thursday 4 March 2010

PREGO LOVE: Beach House "Teen Dream"


So.... Beach House's Victoria Legrand sang on Grizzly Bear's last record "veckatimest". Their 3rd album "Teen Dream" was produced by Chris Coady who did Yeah Yeah Yeahs and TV on the Radio. This record really is a contender for the best album of 2010 already!

Beach House are also on one of Prego's favourite labels, Bella Union and they're on a UK tour with Grizzly Bear from 08.03.10 - 14.03.10.

What are you waiting for? www.myspace.com/beachhousemusic

Wednesday 3 March 2010

Ask Us Anything!

Hey guys,

If you wanna ask us anything you like, you can now do so at http://formspring.me/pregomusic

Nice one,

Prego

Monday 1 March 2010

Some Fan Photos

Hey Guys,

We thought we'd upload a selection of some of the great photos you've taken over the years, thanks for sending them in, we greatly appreciate your support!



O2 Wireless Festival



O2 Wireless Festival
The Water Rats, London
Lincoln

93 Feet East, London

O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire

The Pyramids, Portsmouth

The Pyramids, Portsmouth
The Pleasure Unit, London

The Fly, London