A week
ago you were talking about either taking a hiatus or maybe just
giving up entirely.
What
happened to make you change your mind?
It was a
couple of things.
The main
one being waking up in the middle of the night and looking for a pad
to write down some lyrics and then with that came the dawning
realization that at my core this is what I do.
All the
things that chip away at my confidence are external factors.
Things
that happen to me, but if I am left on my own then what I do is make
music, and it struck me that the struggle to get gigs, to draw
attention to what I am doing, and to create something in the music
business for myself, and all that crap that goes with it is actually
something that is separate from the writing and performing of my
songs.
The songs
are me naked and everything else is... well sort of like the clothes
that I put on.
They
matter, but the body of myself is the important thing and I think I
was losing some focus on that.
That was
the catalyst that took me to the second thing, which was heading to
my brothers house and in one night recording nine songs.
It wasn't
really planned, but it was the best approach I could have taken to
recording.
You have
spoken often about different ways to try and capture your live
performance.
Do you
think you have done it this time?
Yes.
I was
over thinking it.
I was
also looking to try and frame it in what we all do.
You write
songs, you work on them, you perform them, and then you look for a
studio and record them.
Then you
look to get the songs out there in one way or another, but it's all
so much of a template.
The A
that leads to B and then to C.
It's
bullshit really.
It's
actually nothing to do with the music and letting go of that was
exactly what I needed to do.
There's a
bit of me that is annoyed that I didn't come to that conclusion
early.
So do you
know what you are doing next with the material?
No, but
that's no longer concerning me.
Going
along with how it was created I am not looking to take it back to
straight jacketing the songs into any sort of get some CDs done, have
a launch party etc etc.
When I
listen to music a great deal of it is raw.
Early
Woody Guthrie, John Lee Hooker.
Guys like
that whose initial recordings were done on rudimentary equipment and
in the strangest places, and in some way had their own power to them
that maybe wasn't because of the surroundings, but despite them.
It's all
about stripping everything back and letting the songs breath and tell
their own story now.
I'm aware
that when I am saying that out loud it sounds pretentious, but I
can't word it in any other way.
I'm
putting my faith in the songs themselves and it feels right. It feel
natural.
How were
they recorded?.
My
brother John is a genius.
He set us
up in the hallway of his tenement flat, and using two microphones on
some tracks and just one on others he ran it straight into his laptop
and that was it.
It's all
live?
Yes.
All live
and no overdubs.
Seriously.
Nothing has been touched at all.
It's
basically a live session.
So as
there's an albums worth of material are you putting them all out
there together?
Right now
I have no idea.
I was
thinking about using four or five of them.
Some are
new songs and others are older ones that I have changed.
I'm going
with my gut on what happens next.
I am
happy with them all, but I need to sit down and digest them.
Think
about how they would flow best and compliment each other.
It was
only last night that I recorded them with John so I've not even
thought that far ahead.
There's a
freedom to the way I am thinking just now.
I might
just put them online for free download.
Maybe get
a run done on CD to sell at gigs.
I do know
that while I am not writing off a record label getting involved at
some point in the future, I am no longer looking to chase these
people.
That part
of my career when I did that seems like a partial waste of time now.
I was
putting a great deal of energy into something that had little return,
well little positive return as it took me to a point where I felt
drained and I was losing my way.
You sound
a bit evangelical with this?
I am.
I hear it
in my own voice when I am telling you about it.
I feel
excited again for the first time in many months. Got my mojo back
(laughing)
I have
though.
I'm not
embarrassed to say it.
I feel
really good for the first time in recent memory.
What do
you think of the songs?
I'm very
impressed.
So much
so that I think you should just take everything you have online down
and look at this as a new beginning.
Your
brother has captured the live performance and that's a lightning in a
jar thing.
I've
never though there was a formula to it, but he's caught the
lightning.
That
exactly what I was thinking of doing so I am glad that the ideas in
my head are being shared without having dragging them out.
I'm
pleased that you are enjoying the songs to.
I'm not
sure how I would have felt if I had shared the songs with you and the
reaction wasn't positive as it may have dented the high I am feeling.
You don't
know how good I feel that your reaction is the same as my own.
I am so
happy with how this is going that I am thinking that this is what I
will keep doing.
Just
write material and then head around to see my brother and my career
will now just be punctuated by live sessions.
I have a
lot of ideas that I am just edging around.
One is to
start a club, and if people want to join then as I record then they
will be sent the results as I do them.
For a
price?
Well yes,
but, and bear with me as I have no idea what will happen, but maybe
for say £10 a year the person gets everything and I would have made
a promise that within that twelve months they will be guaranteed to
get at least an albums worth of material and there would be no cut
off point.
If I did
six sessions in a year then they get them all.
I'm not
saying that will happen, but I am opening myself up to considering
different options and tomorrow I may have another idea with yet
another jumping in days after that.
Sort of a
pledge deal that lasts a year?
Ha. Well
I could say yes, but I am literally thinking on my feet here.
I might
wake up tomorrow and think of another way of getting the songs to
people.
I want
you to make me a promise though.
What's
that?
Well now
that I have heard the songs you have to promise that self doubt wont
creep in and lead them to the back of a drawer.
Ha. Okay.
I promise.
It's easy
to promise that as right now my head is spinning with songs, ideas
and............Oh man I feel everything so far has just led to this.
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