„Since the beginning of the ’90s I have ‚collected‘ most of my words whilst mapping journeys through inner cityscapes. These places contain rhythms I love, sounds, smells, architecture, light & in particular – overheard conversations, all these things contribute to the words I find, collect & and am inspired to write. I continually return to cities because of their dynamic rhythms & the ease with which I can slip un-noticed through the streets with my notebook and pen. People talk loud in cities, their words freefall through the air, I catch & sing them – their rhythms & syncopation’s are more interesting than the poetry I used to write in the 80’s & by singing ‚conversational English‘
I am taken to different places than my old school traditional writing used to lead me. Having written most of my work for music, books & the daily text I write on underworldlive.com (every day since 1999) I was looking for a new territory to wander in & the edges of cities have for many years been a fascination to me. They are places filled with outsider art, idiosyncratic architecture & outsider cultures who wish neither to live in the city nor in the fields, here there are tribes which choose to live on the rim of the city – permanently just outside the castle walls.
They are a neglected, forgotten tribe & the landscape the inhabit is considered ‚run down‘ – these are sometimes overlooked places which for me are filled with positivity and a dynamism unlike the inner cities. They are places where new rhythms are to be found, so I focused my wanderings in these areas on the Eastern Edge of London where it’s not so easy to go unnoticed if you carry a notebook and pen and where you are likely to be approached by people asking what you’re doing – unlike cities you quickly engage in conversation with other people, like improvising with other musicians in the studio.“