Just another day...

Evenin'!

Ahh, it's been strange times since the last blog. Had a couple of little bits of good news, which I'll elaborate on if they work out.

So, the main news, I suppose, has to be that I've been into the studio over the weekend just gone with The Trestles. It was hard work, and I'm still feeling a bit tired after it, but it was very much worthwhile!
Went to Alan's (Vocals, guitar) on Friday night, to work on some vocals, and to stay over to facilitate an early start on Saturday morning. Was cool; I sang the harmony I'd come up with for one of the tracks, and it went down particularly well, hahaha.
So anyway, we went to Whitby Studios next morning, and then... well, sat round whilst the drums were set up and recorded. That's traditional though! Howard, being the consummate professional he is, had it nicely wrapped up by around mid-day, so I went to do my bass...
Ok, so I'm not going to go step by step through our recording process. Frankly, it's boring to write, and that's never going to bode well for your reader, is it? So, I'll pick out the anecdotes and amusements, arguments and arrangements, then I can return to my, uh, "existential" ramblings. =]

We went for breakfast in a small greasy spoon... And were kept entertained by a crazy cat lady (apparently, she's well known to locals), who was telling her horrified listeners on the next table (mercifully, we were on the opposite side of the café) how she was an animal lover; "My neighbour has 9 cats!"... "Anyone who isn't an animal lover is getting STABBED."... Needless to say, we were suitably amused =']
Tom C was recording his guitar parts for Maggie's Farm (one of the two tracks we worked on), and played us his solo idea. I had an idea for a bit of a different rythm to play, so he handed me the guitar, and told me to do it... Not in an annoyed way, just in an "Ok then, let's hear it", and it worked, so we kept it... Then THE GREAT DEBATE kicked off... In short, I heard a harmony for the guitar solo that I thought would work quite well, so we recorded it, and played in back, to an instant 50-50 split in the band - Tom and How took an instant dislike to it, Alan and I loved it... So, since it was left to Alan and I to do the remaining work in the Sunday session, we kept it in, on the rough mixes... We'll see if it survives the final mix! =p

We had a drink with Mark D from The Dead End Kids on Saturday night... Now, I know I have the tendancy (and, yes, the inclination) to waffle in the course of writing these entries, but by God, I was shown that I still have a lot to learn on that score, by the infamous Johnny Mac.
Beyond mentioning his name, I REFUSE to enter into any description of his conversation; suffice it to say that if I did, you'd fall asleep within approximately thirty seconds of reading the transcript. Words cannot describe the somnolent effect that man has; he was repetitious, drunk, and worst of all (in a way), friendly. It all added up to making him a very difficult character to be rid of, short of a blunt dismissal, which each one of us was waiting for from one of the others! =p

Anyway, I sent the rough tracks to my dad last night, and he seems very pleased with them - I had a feeling he might be, especially with the addition of the Hammond organ sound - He used to play one of those beasts himself!

A quick word on the local bands if I may?
Ok, so I know I keep returning to this subject, but new things keep cropping up that I want to talk (or, well, rant) about.
This time, it's attitudes. Personally, I've never tried to make anyone in any band I've come across feel small, or in any way belittle them. I keep any negative comments I might have to myself, and only give constructive criticism; and that only when I'm asked to - I don't march around making suggestions, because I'm not in a position to do that. So, I ask myself, why do other bands/members feel the need to start believing their own hype, and looking down on everyone around them? It's kind of ridiculous. Ok, so you're confident in your abilities and the music your band is making: Brilliant! Good for you! But don't start acting like you've reached the pinnacle of modern music when you're at the same level as the people you're looking down your nose at. Fuck me, but that's irritating to witness.


Nothing particularly existential to add today, I suppose. I have a few wandering thoughts, but until they're brought into conjunction and start to feed off each other in the fertile petri dish that is my mind, I'm not going to add them here.

My final comment is this:
Leah (bless her) said yesterday that I remind her of Stephen Fry. Any of you who are aware of my interests and tastes will know that I was quite ecstatic about this comparison; she said something along the lines of:
"You remind me of Steven Fry, in that, if you told me the world was flat, I'd believe you like I would him."

That made me smile, and I thought it was a nice note to end this assortment of odds and ends with. =]

Much love y'all,
Tet x