Hi. I know you’re not reading this, because I keep a keen, hawk-like watch on such matters and know that nobody visits this site. So it’s paradoxical that I’m addressing you as you when you don’t exist.
Anyway, as I’m using this here webzone as a kind of occasional diary of events, I thought I’d do a random check in post; especially as it’s now April 2023 and I still haven’t published the long-awaited follow up to Ecce Mono – my much-lauded* masterpiece from 2020.
All the songs are done. In fact, I’ve got too many of them. There are at least 16 songs (some of which I’ve listed over the last few months on here) but there’s a bottleneck, and that bottleneck isn’t (for once) me!
The ‘problem’ isn’t really a problem. It’s actually an opportunity. My mate is a phenomenal bassist and wants us to record songs properly IN A STUDIO AS A BAND. This is such an insanely exciting prospect to me. I haven’t set foot in a recording studio since the 90s – and back then I had exactly 4 songs worth recording, and not even the slightest clue about recording or arranging things.
So, in the meantime, he’s been adding basslines to my last few tracks, but I’m kind of waiting for him to do the same on a bunch more. I’m in two minds as to whether I should just use my own inferior bass playing and get the album released, or wait for him to find time in his hectic schedule to do some proper lines.
Kind of tenterhooks really.
The ‘project’ has yet to have a name, but we’ve got a core line up of me (vox, rhythm guitar) Him (bass) and His Mate (drums). And probably Den (the other half of the Cadavers) as lead guitarist. Him and His Mate are both proper musicians. And I mean in the sense that they are literally capable of playing anything: from thrash to funk, to odd time signatures, to reggae and… well. You get the idea. And for some reason, both of them quite enjoy my brand of fairly anodyne indie songs and want us to record – and maybe even get a few gigs.
Unfortunately, they live far away – so The Unnamed Project is going to take time to pull together. Which means I’m in a kind of happy limbo; knowing that there’s something really exciting on the horizon. It’s also spurred me on a bit with my songwriting. It might not look like I’ve released much of late, but there is an absolute shedload in the offing.
I’ve also now taken up the reins as bassist in a covers band. It’s been a fraught journey with an ever-changing lineup, setlist (and even name!) and the bassist slot has been the hardest to fill – with apparently most bassists being apparently feckless, unmotivated, or just shit. As I can play bass and have a bass, it just seemed logical that I should just take the fucking slot myself so we can crack on. There’s a nice 5 piece line up evolving, and hopefully come the summer we’ll be gig-worthy.
Until recently I was in a Beatles tribute act as a fat Lennon, but I’ve binned it off. Or maybe I’ve been binned off. I’m not sure which. All I know is that Ringo left the band at short notice a few days before a gig, and when another Ringo was found he “came with a John” and that was that. They did the gig with this other John and I’ve not heard anything about it since. I’m certainly not chasing the gig because that seems like a shit way to carry on, and besides it was kind of irritating with the band not quite being up to standard in my opinion (I include myself in that assessment). If you want to be a proper working covers band with an eye on corporate events, weddings, and ticketed gigs you have to be properly tight, well-presented, and generally excellent musicians. While the band were a great bunch of lads, I think there was/is a bit of a gap between talent and ambition and I’m not going to waste my precious time if my efforts aren’t appreciated.
I’d also spent 2-3 years learning a bunch of songs for The Diesel Trees – as their songwriter/guitarist wasn’t comfortable as a frontman but wanted some gigs and to get the band back on the road after a few years laying as a dormant bedroom/home recording project. Like the other bands I’ve been in, it was a pig sorting a lineup out (especially on bass again!) but finally we’d got it together, and a gig in the offing. But then I checked the band’s WhatsApp group with them and found out that I basically wasn’t invited because the singer/guitarist wanted to be up front after all. Between you and I that really really fucked me off. I spent countless hours learning and rehearsing those songs, and then when a gig came round just got binned off without even being told directly.
As both the Beatles and the Diesel Trees were pretty much the same band, it’s hard not to conclude that their band leader ultimately wanted the top slot for himself: which is understandable, but… really fucking annoying considering the time I put into these projects. And not to be too bitchy about it, I’m a much better singer and way more comfortable a performer. But still: we’ve all got an ego, and when a project’s yours you get to call the shots. It’s a shame. I thought we’d become mates. But there you go. Showbiz is a shit business – even on the very bottom rung of the ladder.
*roundly – and correctly – ignored