I'm a great one for losing things. Ask anyone, if you can find them. I'm not the sunglasses on top of the head kind of guy. I'm the sort who needs to use the Find iPhone app to scour the bins of Queens Road (long - deliberately lost - story).
I've lost laptops, keys, bank cards and more umbrellas than the shop in Cherbourg ever sold. If I could I'd have misplaced my childhood before Marillion. I'm more of a loser than Beck. If I had a garden it would be in Heligan. You get the picture. No, please, get it. Before I lose it.
So it stands to reason that the tables would turn and I'd get lost instead.
No longer missing in inaction. September 2018. Photo: Nick McMaster
Regular readers of this column would by now realise that life in The Sweet Ordeal is never completely straight forward. Indeed, to paraphrase Blackadder's Lord Melchett, the life of this band has twists and turns like a twisty-turny thing, and alas, the latest twisty-turn has resulted in a prolonged period of inactivity.
The reasons for previous quiet periods have already been shared in previous blogs, so will not be repeated here in case I lose your attention. However, they have not usually manifested themselves in such a way that caused a near complete break, with what feels like a longer 'holiday' than a Blue Peter tortoise. The difference this time has been me.
There are two types of bands. Or at least two types of bands that I am prepared to write about right now. There are the bands who share the load and there are the bands who have a kind of de facto leader, who tends to either take the load or get given it in a kind of we'll-step back-so-you-don't-have-to-step-forward kind of way. In my experience with the leader model it is a little bit of both, because the leader tends to be the lyricist and the lead singer, and being nearly both in all of my bands down the years, I can conclude that my massive ego wouldn't have it any other way. Yet that doesn't mean I can't moan about it.
I am slightly conflicted about this though. My favourite band, REM, were about as democratic as a band could be. They split everything 4 ways, they all had to approve a song, all decisions (with the possible exception of dodgy haircuts) had to be unanimous. Otherwise they might have gone through with Cans of Piss as a band name. Not sure the £80million recording contract would have followed, mind.
To some extent The Sweet Ordeal do successfully follow this template when it comes to making our music, otherwise sometimes we'd play covers (vetoed by me) and traditional folk (vetoed by John) all swamped with cello (vetoed by Hannah). Yeah, I really bet you want to see that band.
Its more the organising element when we get the hiding under the fringe, staring at the floor and mumbling routine from the other two. So if I don't organise a gig, push for a rehearsal, plan a recording, do our social media then nothing really happens. Do you hear that Stipe? Think you had it hard when your drummer started wanting to write Everybody Hurts rather than just drive the van?
The result is that whilst we all have had events in the summer that have put the band off it's stride, I took the hand off the tiller too much and no one else took up the slack.
We started off the year fairly well, with the gig equivalent of taking up gym membership in January. With good intentions to carry on using the treadmill, we dropped off after thinking maybe the musical beer belly was endearing.
The highlight of this false dawn appropriately took place in a church, though without John. Not because he would shrivel up and die (though he forbids me to use the word 'god' in any lyric) but because he was away. However Hannah and I didn't want to miss the chance to play in front of hundreds of people, supporting Soul of the City Choir. Yes, hundred of people. The Sweet Ordeal. I know. In the context of what turned out to be a largely non performing year that was bloody brave and amazing as we adapted three songs to not include our main musician. And Jesus! We more than got away with it by doing really rather well.
But now we are back properly, as I've started pulling my finger out. We are back in rehearsals again in preparation for ending the year with a house concert or two, hopefully a public gig and the continuation of our album recording.
So lets hope that was the last lull in the life of this band, as I might quit if that damn band leader gets lazy again...
Rewind, rehearse, relief. August 2018. Photo: Nick McMaster
I am slightly conflicted about this though. My favourite band, REM, were about as democratic as a band could be. They split everything 4 ways, they all had to approve a song, all decisions (with the possible exception of dodgy haircuts) had to be unanimous. Otherwise they might have gone through with Cans of Piss as a band name. Not sure the £80million recording contract would have followed, mind.
To some extent The Sweet Ordeal do successfully follow this template when it comes to making our music, otherwise sometimes we'd play covers (vetoed by me) and traditional folk (vetoed by John) all swamped with cello (vetoed by Hannah). Yeah, I really bet you want to see that band.
Its more the organising element when we get the hiding under the fringe, staring at the floor and mumbling routine from the other two. So if I don't organise a gig, push for a rehearsal, plan a recording, do our social media then nothing really happens. Do you hear that Stipe? Think you had it hard when your drummer started wanting to write Everybody Hurts rather than just drive the van?
The result is that whilst we all have had events in the summer that have put the band off it's stride, I took the hand off the tiller too much and no one else took up the slack.
We started off the year fairly well, with the gig equivalent of taking up gym membership in January. With good intentions to carry on using the treadmill, we dropped off after thinking maybe the musical beer belly was endearing.
The highlight of this false dawn appropriately took place in a church, though without John. Not because he would shrivel up and die (though he forbids me to use the word 'god' in any lyric) but because he was away. However Hannah and I didn't want to miss the chance to play in front of hundreds of people, supporting Soul of the City Choir. Yes, hundred of people. The Sweet Ordeal. I know. In the context of what turned out to be a largely non performing year that was bloody brave and amazing as we adapted three songs to not include our main musician. And Jesus! We more than got away with it by doing really rather well.
Pew from the back. Hannah and Nick double up. March 2018.
But now we are back properly, as I've started pulling my finger out. We are back in rehearsals again in preparation for ending the year with a house concert or two, hopefully a public gig and the continuation of our album recording.
So lets hope that was the last lull in the life of this band, as I might quit if that damn band leader gets lazy again...
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