Sunday 17 January 2010

Return of the Prog-monster

I've got myself involved in a slightly unusual musical project.

When Blight-of-my-life had her birthday party, last April, I was approached by three of the folks who I shared a house with, back in the dim'n'distant, to play a bit of bass with them.
Well, I say "approached", but what with all of them clustering around me and  bouncing up and down with enthusiam, it was actually more like being mugged by the some of the world's oldest puppies.

As these were some of the people who shared the Christmas meal I posted about last month, you'll appreciate that we've got some history.

I was fairly reticent about getting involved to be honest, as I'm a believer in the philosophy that you should "never go back". The memory is a dangerously selective beast and if you aren't careful it'll conveniently edit out all the stuff that, if you're brutally honest, you're glad to have grown out of.
I said "I'll think about it...", and left it at that.

As the months went by, I decided that although it would undoubtedly be a bit odd, it wouldn't represent a true musical reunion, as I was never actually a player in the old band.
As such, getting involved wouldn't mean that I was "going back".
Having squared it with my conscience, when a second invitation to participate arrived in amongst the Christmas cards, I accepted.

A couple of weeks ago, I drove down to Pershore to see what we can do.



After three hours in the rehearsal room at Tower Studios, things were a bit clearer.
I had a pretty good idea of how the piece should go, although some reservations about how easy it will be to get desired end result.
Musically it shouldn't be too problematic, but the difference in compositional style from the way we work in Nightflight is quite unsettling.

In spite of this it's good fun, and that, for me, is what playing music with other people is all about.

4 comments:

  1. I don't like going back either, it's never the same, unless a reasonable length of time has passed and you have forgotten most of it. But if it's good fun, that's the main thing, just do it.

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  2. "Never go back" is just one of my philosophies...

    ..."Never say 'never again'" is another.

    Inconsistent? Yes, definitely. :)

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  3. I think I'd say "Never say "Never Go Back"". We went to see Wifeys' old school in St Andrews a few years ago (yes, turns out she really did go to Hogwarts), and have had a couple of great holidays there with the kids since. Girl's best friend is the daughter of an old Uni friend I bumped into four years ago.
    Having said that, I went to Watford 2 years ago - what a built up shopping centre of a hellhole it has become!
    So how about "Don't always say 'Never Go Back' because sometimes its quite nice, but if it relates to Watford then definitely say 'Never Go Back - Ever!!!'"
    Its a bit long, but its my philosophy.

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  4. Is there anybody out there in Blogland who'd care to defend Watford...?

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