Good Tuning

On Monday night I played one of the worst open mic performances ever.

Basically I was lazy and didn't bother to tune up before I went onstage. I then proceeded to play a poor set where both my guitar and my singing was out of tune.

I guess it boils down to playing the same thing too much and no longer caring what people think of my music.

Monday night was embarrassing and a bit of a wake up call. I learnt from my mistakes and was determined to make sure that the gig I had last night would be much much better. It was.

I spent the whole day gently warming up, preparing my equipment and mentally preparing myself for the show. I was completely focused and knew what I wanted to do, how I wanted to deliver my songs and, despite some nerves, I was feeling confident that I would put on a good performance.

Thank you to those who came to The Porter last night - I hope you enjoyed watching the show as much as I enjoyed playing.

I have learnt a lot this week about performing.

Time

I've just got a job in a bar in Bath.

This means that I have lost 20 hours a week of music making and coursework time.

The thing is, before I started working, when I had tons of free time, I didn't have much drive to do anything. I spent hours just killing time, putting off coursework etc. Despite having all the time in the world, I didn't actually manage to get that much done.

However, now that my time is much more limited, I am planning when to do the things I need to do. I feel much more focused and I think I'm actually going to get more done.

It probably helps that I've got some great projects on the go at the moment that I'm really enjoying working on. My head is buzzing with ideas on where to take things and I've got a feeling that I may produce some of my best work yet. It's definitely looking that way at the moment.

Appledore No No

I received an email the other day to inform me that my proposal for The Appledore Arts festival was unsuccessful. I can't really say that I'm surprised but I am definitely disappointed - it would have been a great piece of work and a great experience.

However, I have decided that I will complete an adapted version of the project that will focus instead on the city of Bath.

I'm not intending this new piece to be realised as a sound installation this time but simply as maybe two tracks of audio, one as a soundscape and the other as something more rhythmical using smaller samples to form some percussive loops.

If the weather is OK, I am hoping to get out and start recording tomorrow.

Groundswell

Dan playing at last weeks open mic night.

I really want to go to open mic tonight, however, both my girlfriend and Dan are away meaning I will be going on my own. I would like to think that this would be OK, open mic is the sort of place where everyone goes to enjoy music and I would surely find some nice people to sit and chat to. I'm afraid I don't believe this to be the case though.

New Songs And New Thinking

So far, 2010 has been a genuinely creative time for me. I know I was resolving to do more but what I have experienced so far has been completely genuine, coming out of nowhere.

I wrote a new song a few days ago which, although simplistic in it's nature, has felt like a gate being opened and has allowed tons of new ideas to come flooding out of me.

I have also been listening to lots of David Sylvian on lastfm and can feel his music having influence on me.

I'm thinking of a drastic overhaul to the Tapper project. I'm happy with the general idea and the quality of the songs, I just think I may have been approaching the production and realisation of the songs from the wrong angle.

After toying with some of the songs in a more acoustic form, I am questioning whether the ultra synthetic edge the tracks are taking at the moment is the best way for them to sound. Over the next few weeks, I'm really gonna try and find time to sit down and re-work the songs and see what else I can produce.

A Brand New Age

Happy new year.

My two resolutions for 2010 are to listen to more new music and to make more music.

I didn't bother coming up with healthy eating or lifestyle ones - nobody ever keeps to them - but I did think that the two I've settled on are things that I need to do and will certainly make my life better.

So to get things rolling I have set up an account on last fm. From here I will be able to promote my new music, and will also be able to check out new acts. Great.

So to find music by myself, you need visit - Tapper profile on last fm
and - Tapper profile on myspace.

And while you're there, be sure to check out some music by other acts - if you find anything interesting then let me know.