I reckon we’re about 25% through the next record. We recorded four songs, maybe four and a half, between Feb and April. The day Force came out we were in the studio. We set ourselves half a goal to get 4 songs done in the first half of the year before Sam joined Press Club on a Europe tour. It felt ambitious. It’s often the last thing you feel like doing after all the rigmarole of putting an album out, but we felt pretty energised by it all.
We still don’t really have time to rehearse, so booking time in the studio is a chance for us to learn, finish and record each song. It’s a real part-timers process but I’ve come to enjoy the pain in the arse of it all, probably because there’s no other choice. JP is still doing the drums last rather than first.
One song is ready to go we’re in the early stages of working out the clip. I love film clips but hate coming up with them. I go batty trying to come up with concepts - ideally one that is engaging and cheap. They’re still important pieces to the puzzle, despite not really having a place to live anymore. Karma Police is one of my all time favourites. I love the simplicity of it all. There is a menace to the clip well before you know what’s going on too. Yorke’s bung eye is a bit of a mood setter. They do heaps with bugger all.
That’s got me thinking about Rage when I was a kid. There are a couple of clips that have stayed with me from those days. Gone Away by The Offspring. I loved the dangling microphone and of course the jelled hair and eyebrow ring combo. I was a total sucker for those big ballads. Rage was peaking for me in 96/97. I was 7 or 8 at the time. I’d wake up at 6 and be glued to it. Sometimes I’d wake up earlier and I’d have to survive the end of this shocking workout show. I remember it was beachside, very smiley and lots of fluro. Thinking about it now I’m picturing a really pixelated early video game. You know those little gameboy palm trees? Something’s coming back to me. Was it called OzAerobics? Hang on. FOUND IT! Aerobics Oz Style - you MUST watch the intro.
I loved If You Could Only See by Tonic. The band acts the house down. It’s got it all: interrogation room, seedy motel and of course a girl. You’ll be happy to know the singer saves her and the day. Takes a helluva performance to pull something like that off convincingly. That clip instantly makes me thing of If It Makes You Happy by Sheryl, which had a similar vibe. What is that vibe? The lighting is dank and it feels a bit seedy but looks beaut. Heaps of big pop songs at that time had very moody clips. Push maybe the moodiest? If It Makes You Happy has a great concept though; It’s set in a museum and Shezza is an exhibition. Then there is the single shot perfection of Bittersweet Symphony. Ashcroft is enormous in this clip. It’s the most Britpop thing of the lot. Not bad for one of the supporting cast.
I’m starting to realise I could go on forever here. I didn’t actually set out to chat about clips here, which makes me happy.. and that can’t be that baaaaaayayaaayaaaad. Blur’s Song 2 is another one room ripper. Semi Charmed Life. Steal My Sunshine. These are my memories of Rage. And the terrifying Prodigy clips.
You know what, the Steal My Sunshine clip is fucking perfect. Maybe we should lift that idea? What’s the moped of the 2020s? A E-bike I guess. Hmmm… yuk. I do love driving clips though. How Bizarre has gotta be up there. Or maybe just for me.
When you write you feel good.
I wrote that down when I started writing these so I wouldn’t forget.
I haven’t been writing here lately but I’ve been writing a shitload. I’ve been interested in writing and writing habits mainly. My approach is relatively scatter gun, which can feel directionless or a bit frustrating but I’m making peace with that. As long as I’m doing something creative I chalk it down as time well spent. I’ve got a new mantra which has been helping me too:
Writers read,
And readers write.
Musicians tinker with an instrument in or under their hands
And a melody kicking around in their head.
Maybe I should put that on a mug or tea towel and get rich on Etsy. Is that what Etsy’s for? Feels right.
I wrote that because I was getting sick of losing time on my phone. It’s a bastard and it had/has me hooked pretty good, depending on the week. It’s easy to lose control. Often it just makes me feel insignificant or reminds me of the opportunities others are getting that I want. None of that serves, which I guess is old news, yet I mindlessly thumb through total shit because it’s an crutch when I’m feeling lazy.
Writing for writings sake reminds me to enjoy words and removes the expectation and comparison. It’s the same as picking up an instrument and noodling. It’s like footy coaches say: always have a footy in your hands. Kick it, bounce it, hold it, take it to bed with you. I saw something the other day about the skill of footy players being lower across the board because kids are looking at their phones rather than kicking a footy on their way to school. That might’ve been a long bow drawn by some junk pundit on Triple M, but there’s truth in it, I reckon. Fucking phones. What a waste.
Right,
Nothing To Do. It’s my favourite song on the record. The demo’s sick too, let me dig it up. It’s from 15th of October 2021.
And then closer to recording there was this one with some more interesting synth stuff.
And then in the actual recording the lyrics changed a bit, mainly in the bridge. I love playing this song live. Gets me jacked up. I remember having to convince Sam it was a good one. Sometimes he doesn’t share my enthusiasm for something straight away, which shits me because then I need to be sure I really like the idea. Ultimately it’s a good check and balance, but frustrating because I love that feeling of collective enthusiasm more than anything. It actually might be the best part about being in a band. I was confident Sam would come around, so I dug in with Nothing To Do.
Nothing To Do
It took me a long time to notice
I was looking up hill again
Kinda standing there with my hands on my hips
Looking like a proud on man who’s just
Realised he doesn’t know who he is
But doesn’t wanna let on
Every tiny little thing that could go wrong
Went wrong
Down Memory Lane
Money blown
Everything that went fast caught my eye until
I couldn’t look in my own
I’m standing on the outside waiting for you
I am tired of standing on the outside waiting for you
I watch your eyes light up
They’re starting to move
I am tired of waiting on you
That’s the way I brought up
You’re setting me up,
My hands are cold
God is a loser and don’t I know
You’re running out of time muchacho
And I don’t really give a fuck
Bury my soul
I will dissolve in it
I got myself into this
I’m standing on the outside waiting for you
I am tired of standing on the outside waiting for you
I watch your eyes light up
They’re starting to move
I am tired of waiting on you
Be the same as you’ve always been
Be the train be the tracks be the waiting
Be the things you’re always saying
Be the same you’re never changing
I’m your second choice
Your imposition
Your old clothes
You talk and I listen
Love these, thankyou legend.
Just bought a new fleece, keep killing it & appreciate you sharing the demos.