It Begins......

Welcome to my first blog post. Let's not get too emotional about it. I derived considerable joy from blogging on myspace, and it used to give me a giddy thrill when i checked the blog count and discovered people were actually reading them.

Myspace users have all but disappeared from the radar now, and facebook has welcomed them with open pixels. While i appreciate the fast load up time and ease of use with facebook, it all looks rather cold to me, photos being your only opportunity to stamp your mark on your page. Im a barrel of opinions, so expect regular blogs ranting about things i cannot hope to change.

Last night i played a gig with Far-Cue in Melksham. The Far-Cue story is an interesting one, featuring pretty much every cliche rock n roll moment only without the money to back it up. But then money and Far-Cue are like oil and water, they really don't mix.
We hadn't played in Melksham for quite a while. Brains were racked trying to figure out just how long it was but estimations ranged from a few months ( wrong! ) to a couple of years ( nearer the mark ). Happily, the good people of the 'Sham hadn't forgotten we existed and the pub was what one might label 'heaving'.

This is in no way an attempt of self trumpet blowing on my part. Being a chap who enjoys live music, and being a chap who plays in two bands that partake of that very activity, i have recently observed a disturbing trend in local music gigs.
The ' pub scene ' is not one to be ignored. It gives bands a chance to refine their chops, for people to listen to their music, and God forbid, to even make a bit of cash into the bargain.
The trend i speak of is sadly nothing more than a lack of interest. After discussions with various people whose opinions i respect, it all pretty much points to the same thing: the smoking ban.

Last year, this one legislation was responsible for the closure of 4 pubs A DAY. I can only imagine that figure has increased this year, especially with the recession piling on the misery.
Me? I'm not a smoker. I'll get my cancer for free ta very much. I don't mind people who do smoke though. I dont think i've had a girlfriend that didnt smoke. Growing up around smokers, i actually derive some comfort and pleasure from the tang of cigarette smoke, and second hand smoke is a damn sight cheaper than paying for it yourself.
Of course i'm probably in the minority there, but the impact of the smoking ban on struggling bands is thus; people go out for a cigarette in the middle of your gig and.......they don't come back. I've seen it time and again, both from the stage and quite near it.

In the smoking areas, conversations are struck, anecdotes and jokes swapped and gossip spread. You can do neither of these things with a band playing in your face. I know, because i'm guilty of doing that very thing. I head out to the smoking area with my friends who smoke because i dont want to stand alone like a lemon, then before you know it the band have finished. And lets not forget the smoking ban means you're lucky if people go to the pubs at all anymore.

Bands are up against it. I think live music is taken for granted in this country. We're extremely fortunate to have the breadth and quality of music we do from the pub scene, and punters can just walk in for free and get a taster of it.
Lucky devils.
The only real reward for bands is the reception they get from the audience, i assure you the rewards are not financial. Last night was brilliant. If i did wear a hat, i'd take it off to every last person in that pub. They cheered every song so much we ended up playing for two hours. Take that Bruce Springsteen. Lately, we would not have had the interest to warrant a two hour gig. It runs in a circle. If the crowd love it, you love it, you look like you're loving it so the crowd love it. It sounds a bit like a hippy theory of an energy circuit but it's true.

For a time i thought it was us. Far-Cue took a little break, and came back not with a bang but with a bottom burp. A few months off renders you out of shape, out of favour and out of practice. I sincerely hope last night wasn't a one off because it felt like.....dare i say it.....old times.