Time

Song 40 is recorded, but I've not had chance to put it online yet.

Song 41 is written (pretty much) but I've not had chance to record it yet.

Time is short; stress is high; but donations are healthy and I will get these last 12 songs done, I promise!

In the meantime, thank you for your continued support, and let me once more raise the Song A Week battle cry:

BEAR WITH ME!

Hang on again...

I'm off on (belated) honeymoon to the States on Monday - four weeks around the North, South and West - but this means I've been cramming a hell of a lot in at the moment to pay for it!  But Song A Week will still be continuing.  Here's what's coming up in the next few weeks:

• Song 28 - the most ridiculous track I've done since Marty & Me back at track 4
• Thoughts on the second and third Secrets of the Pop Song BBC programme - read my thoughts on part one here
• Various wibblings about musical things I come across in the US of A
• And of course, Songs 29 onwards.  Yes, courtesy of VocaLive I'll be able to record while we're out there.  (I have a very understanding wife - it was actually Jess's suggestion!)

Ta-ra! Mind the roads!

 But in the meantime, as we'll be going to Graceland at some point, here's a track I recorded a few years ago of which I'm very fond - it's an odd little thing, but I'd love to know what you think.  I think it's kind of a prelude to Song 26: Escape on Amenartas.

  

More tracks at my Soundcloud Site 

And finally, do try and come along to the gig tomorrow night (Friday 22nd July) at The Star Inn, Guildford. We'll be playing a few new tracks from the Song A Week project, and will be supported by Steve The Drummer's band Earthtide - 70s inspired metal with stoner grooves.  They are not to be missed - a truly excellent band, with excellent musicianship and superb heavy-as-Rick-Waller guitar riffs that lift them above most other metal bands on the circuit.  £2 in; doors about 8.30. 

Ticking along

Cracking night at the Slug & Lettuce in Guildford last night - really good atmosphere, with some great musicians and a friendly vibe* all round. 

With last weekend being out of action, and this week being horrendously crammed (last week of term at the college at which I teach), I have fallen way behind with SAW2011, but I do have a couple of things in the pipeline so I hope to be nicely caught up by the end of next week.  Odd little number in 6/4 should be making itself heard soon...

Also, I'm looking at getting some CDs printed up, and the ReverbNation site properly working.  Watch this space!


*I'm really not fond of this word, but it seems to have fallen out of my fingers.  Give it a fortnight and I'll start talking about giving my music a new "Flava"

Art Attack! (alas, not with Neil Buchanan)

I'm afraid, folks, that the next update will most likely be even more delayed than usual, due to the fact that my main Song a Week recording day is Sunday, which happens to be my 1st Wedding Anniversary!

Me n Jess, bossin' the Charleston innit!

So apologies for that, but I'm sure you'll forgive me this once...

Also, I've been playing with a Bamboo tablet - song 11 saw the debut of my shoddy artistic "skills", and instead of taking the risk of infringing somebody's copyright, I'll be drawing my own pictures for the YouTube vids in future.  How thrilling!

You'd better never bother with me ol' Bamboo...

While we're on the topic of art, here are a couple of art sites and webcomics I rather like:

Paper Sails - blog and main site of my friend Roland MacDonald.  Tremendous artist.
Perry Bible Fellowship - hilarious, like a sick James Thurber
Hyperbole and a Half - hilariously illustrated anecdotes of everyday life and childhood memories
Oglaf - DEFINITELY FOR ADULTS ONLY but beautifully drawn

Enjoy!  I'll be back online soon with Song 12 and more musical wibblings.

Frustratin'

Song 4 is written, and the backing's recorded; I just need to find half an hour in my life to record the vocals!

I need to get a shift on - it would seem, according to this site here, that I'm already a week behind on things...

I can, however, reveal that the new song is called "Marty And Me", and is about a couple of burglars who bite off more than they can chew.  It's nothing to do with Back To The Future - sorry.

24/1 update

Nothing's working.  Most annoying. 

As I've said several times before, one of my aims with this thing is to get over my normal routine of:

1. Work out idea/riff/chords/beat
2. Get bored with it/feel totally uninspired by it
3. Give up

I must gone through this at least half a dozen times today.  The trouble is that my aim of just getting the song written is being counteracted by the fact that these songs are being posted online for everyone to hear.  I'm a vain and insecure musician, and therefore I need everybody to love everything I do all the time.  This is why musicians are so annoying to be around.

I need to get over this worry.  Even if I only posted songs I thought were good, that wouldn't be any guarantee that anybody else would like them.  Similarly, just because I think a song's dull and unimaginative, it doesn't mean anybody else will agree with me.  How many songs are there that have sold millions, yet when you hear them you think, "How did anybody fall for this crap?!"

So basically, I need to stop worrying and just get the songs written.  Or, as my dad would say, "Shit, or get off the pot." 

Bear with me!

January being stuffed with birthdays and new students, I'm afraid today's been the first time I've had to work on the song properly.  Got to record a whole load of backing vocals (such as they are - I'm still really snotty) so the song won't be online until tomorrow evening, folks. 

If all goes to plan this week, I should be able to get song 3 finished by this weekend, which means I'll be back on track.  Things start to calm down again in February, which means I'll finally be able to:

a) give these songs a little more attention than they've been getting so far;
b) get to the gym;
c) scratch my arse.

Tomorrow evening - I promise!