Baby Disco DJing

I’ll be DJing at the Sparklehorse’s Baby Disco this Sunday 26th May.  It’s thee place to be if you’ve got a love of Indie music and a wee tot that likes to shake their bum to it!  Drinks, food and fun 1-3pm in the pub owned by Sci-fi Steven! Hope to see you there.

Feature on Scottish bands and their love of vinyl as we celebrate Record Store Day this week!  

After such a great gig before, Guided Missile have pleasure in announcing that Bis will play the Lexington in London on Thursday 25th July (the day before we play Indietracks Festival in Derby).  Tickets are £10 and on sale May 1st at noon from www.wegottickets.com.  Tickets sold out extremely fast last time, so get this date into your filofax now!  

We plan to play some new (yes - NEW!) songs, so get that wax out your ears ready to listen :)

I will be nearly 7 months pregnant by these gigs, so they’re going to be very memorable in many ways!  We really hope you can join us!!!  

Release date 18th October

Well this is one bit of news that I’m nervous the write about…..but…. there’s a baby Rin on the way!  Wah! I’m SOOO excited but nervous. It’s early days though and I’m only 11 weeks gone.  I didn’t want to reveal anything until after the 12 week scan, but when a TNT courier came to the door on Monday pointing at my belly and saying “congratulations” I realised that I couldn’t hide it for much longer :) 

It’s been difficult to hide as some people may know that I’m quite partial to a glass of wine.  For the past few months I’ve went to pubs and ordered my usual, then sat with it in front of me while Mr Memo sips away at it whenever people we know aren’t looking.  It was quite an achievement to succeed with this especially in Sci-fi Steven’s pub the Sparklehorse as there’s many friends there.  I also like wearing dresses, but there’s only about 1 or 2 that hide this bump best and I’m getting sick of wearing the same clothes all the time.  We recently revealed the news to our families so I can now at long last confide in all my lovely online buddies and tell you guys as I’ve been dying to talk about it!  I’m going to become a Mummy and want to scream it out loud!

We enjoyed our recent trip to Miami as we knew it would most likely be the last time we’d travel so far in a while (or could afford to!).  It was perfectly relaxing but I did miss my wine when flying and USA cocktails (first trip you didn’t see any pics of me boozing?!).  I was concerned at only 8 weeks pregnant about the chances of miscarriage, but had my travel insurance in place and wanted to relax best I could. All went well, we got home, then awoke for work the next day.  Hubby had just left for work then I started to bleed the most I ever have. I screamed “noooooo” (sorry neighbours!) and cried and cried and cried.  I rang the hospital and they wouldn’t see me until the next day which I couldn’t believe!  I immediately called a private clinic, fetched hubby (after being in work just 30 mins), then went for an ultrasound.  The lady said “it doesn’t look good” from what I told her - then announced there was a perfect heartbeat and a lovely looking baby still there!  I WAS SOOOO HAPPY!!!!  That must have been one of the worst mornings I’ve ever experienced.  

Early on we were aware that there was a 2nd embryo that never made it to having a heartbeat. Twins wouldn’t been an amazing thing but we’re aware of the risks that brings and were just extremely happy to have one healthy heartbeat by our first scan. So, turns out this blood was from this other little person and it was fortunately not very close in proximity to the healthy baby.  I got another heavy bleed just last weekend and yesterday too which scared the crap out me again each time, but once again was told that everything was okay.  Until this little person is healthy in my arms I don’t think I’ll relax or stop being scared. 

So that’s the scary/sad bit out the way.  Exciting stuff is that it’s due on 18th October, the date of Sci-fi’s youngest daughter’s birthday. The Bis gig at Indietracks Festival is still going ahead as planned but what a shame I can’t carry my own keyboard :)  I’ll not be doing my usual jumping around or drinking wine which will take me a while to get used to, but I’m very up for the challenge and look forward to telling my baby that it did a gig as a 6 month old foetus! 

It’s also great that with having MS I shouldn’t have any relapses while pregnant.  But, after giving birth I’ll probably have the worst one I’ve ever had - but I don’t think about that for 6 months!

So, onwards and outwards now!  I really do have a giant tummy on me so it’s going to be an interesting 6 months to go.  So glad I have you guys to talk to now and thanks for listening to my first 3 months of excitement and trauma!  Here’s a sneaky vid we got of the little person dancing, and why we call it Wriggles just now!

I will be guest DJing at the Sparklehorse Bar next Sunday 31st March. It’s for the infamous Baby Disco (well known for lots of dancing, happy children and police visits!) and is 1-3pm.  Afternoon fun for adults and tots wanting to dance to upbeat indie tunes - come join us!

Bis have pleasure in announcing that we’ll be playing Indietracks Festival 2013!  The festival is on 26-28th July and we will perform on Friday 26th.  It’s located at the Swanwick Junction site of the Midland Railway Butterley in Ripley, Derbyshire.  There will be more details announced by Indietracks shortly (their blog is here) with who else is playing etc. but we hope you can make it along!!

Hyperbubble featuring Manda Rin - In the Movies

Oi, Oi, Oi! 

I recently provided vocals for another band - the amazing Hard Skin! There’s 2 CDs and I’m on the ‘Why Do Birds Suddenly Appear’ alongside Alison Mosshart, Joanna Newsom and other “top birds”.  Released 4th March and pre-orders available now from http://jtclassics.co.uk 

Well worth checking out!

Guest vocals on Hyperbubble’s EP

I recently provided Texas band Hyperbubble with some vocals for their 5 track EP. It’s now got a release date and I’m very excited for them! From 14th Feb - available on Amazon.com, CDbaby.com, Hyperbubble’s Shop (Posters there too!) and my Planetmanda.com shop for £3.50 + postage.  MP3s from the usual outlets too if you want a sneak listen!

Festival for Bis!

Summer is on the way, and……looks like Bis are playing a festival in England! Can’t reveal anything for a wee while, but roll on July!

Bis play Girls & Boys by Blur

Bis at the Flying Duck in Glasgow on Hogmanay.  It’s the “90’s Common People” night, hence the cover version!

Thanks for the turnout!

My art exhibition for “Single Bullets” at Bar Gandolfi went really well last night!  I was quite overwhelmed by the turnout and really appreciated that! A big thank you to everyone who came along and enjoyed the complimentary wine!  The three pieces are on display until 31st January and are also on sale at www.planetmanda.com/shop  

Single Bullets

I hung my new art exhibition “Single Bullets” at Bar Gandolfi last night!  It’s 3 pieces, only 1/1 of each, and is acrylic paint on canvas.  The titles are “A Quarter to 3”, “This is Not a Test” and “Time Expired”. Massive thanks to my Dad helping with the last minute necessary drilling!! The launch is on Sunday 16th December (sorry I said 15th by mistake before) and is 5-7pm with free quality wine while you smooze and look at my pieces and the other two artists’ David Murphy and Craig McKintosh.  Please come along!  

My blurb is below:

Most famous for being a singer in successful indie-punk-pop band Bis, Manda Rin and her artwork is synonymous with the band’s style and sound. After breaking onto the UK music scene with a unforgettable performance on Top of the Pops, Bis’ first album “The New Transistor Heroes” sold over 100,000 copies in Japan alone; the country that had in fact originally inspired the sleeve’s manga artwork.  The popularity of Manda’s work resulted in her producing a monthly comic strip for Japan’s Buzz magazine.

After a brief fling with digitally worked album sleeves, an album on the Beastie Boys’ Grand Royal label, and a stint as a BBC radio presenter, she recently returned to her Manga beginnings with an exhibition entitled “Cover Versions and Other Hits”, in which she reinterpreted the sleeves of her favourite albums in her now iconic style.

Using acrylic on canvas, her latest collection “Single Bullets” proves that Manda can make her signature style work no matter the medium. Each of three pieces, “Time Expired”, “A Quarter to 3”, and “This is Not a Test”, takes a frame from a fictional comic strip and moves it onto an individual canvas, leaving the order unknown and forcing each piece to tell its own story.

Sci-Fi Steven & Manda Rin DJ in Glasgow

Need a bloody good Saturday night?! Sci-fi Steven and Gavin Dunbar (Camera Obscura) DJ at Glasgow’s the Flying Duck, the 2nd Sat of every month for the club Back Tae Mine.  But - December 8th, Gavin is being replaced by ME!!  The club is 11pm-3am, its free entry into the kitchen bar before 11pm, so come along early!  See you in a few weeks for great toons, drinkies and free toast!! 

Launch date for my new art exhibition!

I’ll be exhibiting my latest art pieces as a Group Show in Glasgow with David Murphy and Craig McIntosh at Bar Gandolfi in December/January.  The launch date is Sun 16th Dec 5-7pm so please come along (there’s also wine!)

As I’d previously mentioned - for this I have created three fairly large canvases with acrylics, so only 1/1 available of each.  It took over a month to create each piece, but it’s been a great adventure and keeps me out of trouble. I’ve embraced my passion for manga and look forward to seeing how people think this transfers to canvas.