Mini Audience stimulates Practice

Present: Ad, Eg, Fea and Tom

Guests: Sarah, Joe and Hannah

Joe took over some bass playing, Ad on broken drums, Hannah hit a tom tom and Sara tambourine

Post Practice:
Fea convince Sziget attendance, Flight cancellations, Ad Thai

Kingmaker

Present: Ad, Eg, Fea, Tom

Venue: Valley Studios

This evening involved mulled wine, as warmed in the filthy microwave in the rehearsal area while listening to some band playing a great rendition of Phils Collins & Bailey's Easy Lover. Tom jigging around so much he nearly spilled the wine down the back of a stray amp.

It also involved the recording of a track called Kingmaker. Supposedly an album filler, but with the Loopy perfectionists on hand it turned into a bit of an opus.

Fea laid down his rhythm guitar to a click track. Always a bit of a hit and miss exercise but success was achieved in three takes.

Probably.

Eg put down his vocals. Ad his bass. Then came Tom's dodgy guitar, Ad's dodgy backing vocals and Eg's rather fine new Toy instrument, the melodica.

More backing vocals later and there was something resembling a mixable track for the boys to take home and assess.

Someone's Here, Not There, in The Sky Above My House

Present: Ad, Eg, Tom  

Venue: Winchester

The plan was to continue recording. Experimenting with Sky Above My House and seeing if Ben could find that old tension-relieving recording of Someone to finish. Also managed to get a brand new song finished: Here Not There - written by the Noizees, fronted by Eg's youngest daughter Jessie, aged 10 - started with Tom struggling to keep obedient to the click track and ended with his low and laid back voice beautifully fleshing out the rather jolly harmonies.




Does Tom buy a ukulele and a cheap banjo? Or just a ukulele? And can Eg's tambourine skills keep up with the click track? Bottle of white wine to help the creativity flow and Ben's been thinking about buying yet another Cortina. He's also only gone and cleaned half his mixing desk and half the studio. Something's half in the air.

Ben's Foster Child in the Sky Above My House

Present: Ad, Eg, Fea, Tom

Venue: Valley Studios, Winchester

Time for some more recording.

With the lack of regular drummer the boys are left with the desire to just Do Some Recording. Hence this evening.

Tom has lost his voice, or rather, seems to have found it behind a dusty old shed, in the dark, gravelly back yard. Everyone is unsure if it's as sexy as it should be. Singing is out for him this evening, however. Which possibly explains the light mood all round this evening.

Fea and Eg turn up with Eg providing the cheap German 'Champagne' in order to celebrate Fea's Fortieth, last week. Tom gives the group the benefit of his tasting experience by critiquing it.

All the more funnier due to his loss of voice. For example...


Ben informs that his new son, born two weeks previously, is called Foster.

Loopy inform Ben that the track for this evening, born some time last year, is called 'Sky Above My House'

The recording is actually started by working out how the evening should pan out. The initial idea begins with laying down a click track. Fea puts his guitar down and tries to keep in time with the robotic, perfectly paced 4/4 high-hat hit that Ben's desk generates.

It's not as easy as it might sound and after Ben does some jiggery pokery with his editing skills the guide track, with an Eg guide vocal, is laid.

Ad puts his tenor ukulele over the top of that and adds a simple bass line. Eg adds a confident vocal on his second run through and leaves a pleasing impression on the promise of what could be a nice evening's work. Ad harmonises, somehow, and Fea shouts tunefully thereafter. Tom rasps out some rather nice harmonica before midnight strikes and everyone scuttles home, pleased with the outcome so far. Ideas are flying around about how the recording can be developed. Cello, Choir, Brass?

Being in a band is a good thing.

Loopy Christmas Do

Venue: The Sweet Olive, The Chequers Inn, Aston Tirrold, Didcot

Present: Ad, Eg, Fea, Gi and Tom


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It was snowing and fogging. Tom picked Ad and Fea up from Newbury. Tom keeps his music equipment in his car because he has no room in his house to keep it. Ad got in the back with a large and heavy keyboard on his lap. The phone call came through that Eg needed picking up too. He squeezed in the back with Ad meaning the vertically placed guitar had to be laid flat on top of the keyboard across both back seat passengers' legs.

Fea would have been giggling in the front had it not been for Tom's 'interesting' driving.

Gi was already at the restaurant when the steamed up vision of Tom's car appeared, snow-crunching its way into the car park.

Starters, Mains and Desserts.

This year's Cracker Special provided by 'Santa Claus' contained mechanical Brussel Sprouts and a racing circle in the form of a drawing of a plate. The sprouts needed to be wound up, placed in the middle and let go. The last sprout Out [off the 'plate'] gets knocked out.

Fea won.

It was Gi's birthday too.