Feeling Nocturnal. A blog from Mishkin.

"I am shaking

It's all in writing

In ink of my skin

That I got caught in

And I've got halos

But not where the light shows

Where no coal glows

And only he knows"

From NOCTURNAL, a song with Georgia Train this month on Patreon.

- - -

Dearest Flock,

It's so hard to put into words sometimes everything that goes on in my head each month.

I wish I could record it and listen back, and hand out the best bits for you. I feel as if time is rushing by so fast and I barely have time to look back at what has been and gone.

Birdeatsbaby is 12 years old (15 unofficially), and I have been living in Brighton since 2003. I'm 36 and somehow still doing the band thing, much to the constant disappointed of my parents who are still waiting for this "phase" to end. Megalolz.

The amount of music I have created or been part of in that time is staggering. There are so many, that I can't even remember some of my own songs. I sometimes find I am googling lyrics I have written years ago in order to help me recount the words. Must be getting old.

I used to treasure every single song lyric like it would never be forgotten. I would write out the words again and again in black ink in special "finished songs" books that would only have one the final version.

These days I have 3-4 notepads of scribbles on the go, each one full of poems and ideas never to see the light of day. Some of it spills over into my laptop and phone, and the words are now a tangled thread that I am constantly unravelling and adding to the giant tapestry that is my musical pathway. I should go back and high-five my 10 year old self. Or just have a nap on all my notebooks.

Currently, I am working on about 5 collaborations, 2 albums, 8 recording projects and a day job teaching. The Nest Studio is thriving already and Garry is constantly developing his arrangement and mixing skills. I'm running 3 times a week, studying 3 courses, practicing 3 musical instruments, meditating and learning Russian. No wonder time is flying by.

In think the ability to keep this ridiculous level up has been helped by the fact that during the last 9 months I've given up alcohol, caffeine and online shopping (well, almost). Without these distractions that were draining my energy and money, I finally have a healthy routine, new goals, and I try very hard to stick to it.

It's safe to say I'm fairly manic right now, and desperately trying to stay on the right side of the high. During these spells I can balance a hundred things without breaking a sweat, be insanely and effortlessly creative, and I adore the challenge of completing many tasks. The downside is I can crash pretty hard and then hate myself for dropping all the plates. I'll spend a week in bed wallowing and rely entirely on Simon (bless Simon) to help me pick up the pieces. Fortunately my bestie, Hana, is also bi-polar and we try to keep each other upright as much as possible. I have a very good support network around me, and that includes you guys.

Part of the reason for dropping the weekly livestreams was to allow just a little bit more time for myself to be creative. I love singing to The Flock but the practice of older material keeps me away from the new, so it was time to take a break from online shows and focus on... writing.

I have so much new material in the pipeline. And it will be ready soon for your ears.

There will be 3-4 more collaboration projects to finish this year, then I'm taking a break from that and focusing entirely on the albums HEX & The Chemical Perils, and my side project with Hana, HVIRESS.

Would you like to see the song list? Of course you would.

MEGA SONG LIST

Mishkin Fitzgerald & The Chemical Perils

Goliath

The JackKnife

The Putrid Brine

голобой вагон

Bleat

Best Intentions

Blame

Legs Broken

Pink Elephants

Lou's Song

Himaar Miyet

Slinky

IOGWYGM

- - -

HEX

(there will eventually be nine songs)

HEX

Shift

I Lay Under The Weight Of It All

Ribbons

Last Call

Clique of Cunts

- - -

HVIRESS

Arrival

Golden Apple

No Exit

I hope you are as excited as me.

Sooner than that I have a lot of things coming out this month right here on Patreon.... here come your tiers...

PATREON REWARDS

$1+ NEW MOON

Invitation to the "Little Tomkins" zoom listening party, where we hear the new song Mother's Cradle, and chat to the man behind the synthesiser, Tomos Walter. Headphones are a must for this.

$3+ WAXING CRESCENT

Another song from Mishkin & Georgia Train (Bitter Ruin), called Nocturnal. This one is gorgeously classical and could've been an early Muse b-side with more choirs.

$5+ FIRST QUARTER

My monthly snaps. This time I will be including some photos from the HVIRESS press release, some outdoors shots and some photos of my lyrics books.

$15+ WAXING GIBBOUS

My monthly vlog - behind the scenes at the HVIRESS press release, photos of Little Tomkins and I imagine a pug may sneak into it somewhere.

$25+ WANING GIBBOUS

I am SO excited about this month's BEB talk. I will be chatting about my spiritual leanings towards Wicca, my religious history and where I feel most comfortable on the faith spectrum. I will be demonstrating some basic rituals, and talking about how witchcraft has taken a place in my song-writing.

$50+ FINAL QUARTER

Our chosen cover this month is Pixies - Where Is My Mind? I will say no more.

$70+ WANING CRESCENT

This month we have ordered an insane amount of new merchandise. I shall reveal soon what you guys are getting but trust me it's going to be very very cool.

$100+ FULL MOON

You guys - if you ever want something just hit me up. I could give you a tarot reading, a private song or just a chat. Whatever you need, just let me know.

--

It's also worth mentioning that our beautiful drummer Anna's band DORJA have release an EP today. It's gorgeous. Go listen to it and share it - they've worked their arses off on this and you can tell. Buy it on bandcamp where the money goes direct to them.

Ok that's me done for a little while. I love hearing from you so please feel free to write back, comment, or just send me an emoji. I hope whoever and wherever you are that you are happy, safe and well. Big love to the Flock.

Mishkin and the birds x