taking fire

So I’ve gone and joined another band…

For years I played bass in bands alongside unimaginative and occasionally mediocre guitarists (I’m not being bitchy, they’d agree). I like the bass, and took great joy in providing the crushing “low end” back in the insanely noisy days of (the crappy) Bee Thousand and (slightly better) The Happy Ending. But I was always a guitarist first and foremost and as such would find it frustrating not being able to play the instrument I loved the most onstage. I got my fair share in the studio, recording lead parts and filling in when others couldn’t record a complete take but this simply added to the frustration.

When I moved to London I wasn’t sure whether to join an existing band, to try and start a new one or maybe just tinker at home on the computer. I thought about it for a while and didn’t do much about it, apart from playing and playing and playing when I was unemployed. I’ve never been a massive fan but discovered that (don’t laugh) playing Metallica is a sure fire way of improving ones skills; the speed, accuracy and palm-muting required by your picking hand alone needs to be of a very high standard to play along with a track. And that’s not even taking into account what you’re doing on the fretboard. Lyrically they might not be the best – “My lifestyle determines my deathstyle” anyone? – but you cannot doubt their musical talent. So I played, improved and damaged my ears.

Drowned In Sound has always given me a laugh, especially the Community section where opinionated little indie shits spout off about what’s good and what isn’t. It’s especially fun to wade into a discussion about which bands should be voted by the fans to play ATP and throw in something like, “Have U2 ever played ATP?”

Anyway, there is a Musicians section which is self-explanatory enough and I’d check this on a daily basis to see what was happening. I emailed a couple only to find out their tunes were the usual shouty indie pish with jagged guitars, ironic synths and a metronomic beat. Boring.

One day a decent sounding ad was listed containing a simple enough Guitarist Wanted headline which was enough to get my attention. Turns out there were two of them, no vocalist, one on bass and one on guitar and they were looking for guitar number 2. Everything else is done by computers. Influences the same as mine and the tunes appealed in that soundtrack/soundscape/drone/noise way that I love. So far so good.

I was given a handful of tunes to learn which I duly did and wondered what it would be like actually playing with a band as a guitarist for once. I showed up nervously with a guitar and a half-dozen pedals for a run-through and played with them for a few hours. And I went back the following Sunday and did more of the same.

I was officially asked to join on Wednesday but wasn’t given a $1 million advance like Rob Trujillo was, shame that. So now it’s time to ship my Sunn amp down from Edinburgh, buy some more pedals to add to my arsenal and hopefully write and record some cool music.

One major thing has changed from last time though – this time I will never, ever expose myself to loud volume without ear protectors. I suggest you do the same kiddies.