AFTER the routine admin I set up for my first Zoom guitar student of the day.
There’s a one-off session with a guitar student in Killearn which is further away than ‘usual’ because of all the closed roads around the area. We have a good hour and i think I manage to help with a few things that had been flumoxing her.
After lunch my priority is to lay down vocals on the first track to be recorded for the new album. The session goes pretty well. I do a rough mix and send it off to Chris for drums to be added.
There’s time for a quick walk up the lochside which doubles as an opportunity to do some candid livestream promo for my Wildcats’ group livestream later.
I edit some video from the first song recording process to put in the livestream along with some archive Radiotones footage form 2006 and plan the livestream before another Zoom guitar student. Phew!
Mic-ing the guitar for the first new song session…
MARGARET’S off to take Catriona and the kids swimming in the village.
I have breakfast and get a few things done then all roll up. Margaret makes the kids mac’n’cheese and I hit the studio.
Time’s starting to run out to get all my recordings ready for mixing at Chem19 and I need to get the new songs finished and recorded. I decide to start with a new song – Devil May Care – as I need to send it to my pal Chris in Northern Ireland to add some drums.
I watched a video on re-amping guitars and, as luck would have it, I don’t need any extra gear, so I think this is the way forward for recording the guitar. Plus three microphones it will cover all bases.
It wakes me a while to get set up and figure out what to do…then I need to work out the final (?!?!) guitar part, set up mics and get recording. Recording and producing your own stuff, by yourself, is quite difficult…but tI think I get a take in the bag….
Happy with my progress – albeit slow – I go back tot hehjosue and marinade some chicken for the grill then go out for a quick walk.
I get the charcoal and grill going and do the chicken which we enjoy while watching a film…no idea what it was called but it was about two old folks in an apartment block getting to know each other….
The West Highland Way route to Conic Hill is a grand bike ride…
UP EARLY at Catriona’s…no choice when the kids are jumping all over you!
Will gets back from his nightshift and has a coffee with us while we have breakfast…then he goes to bed and Catriona takes Aaron to a party. Margaret and I stay with Freya and when Margaret takes her to feed the ducks I start the bike ride home.
I stop off at Duncan and Irene’s in Gartmore to pick up a hat I left there on our last visit then carry on my way home.
The bike’s pretty manky from the off-road sections of.my route. I wash it down, give it a dry then lube the chain and give the while bike a once-over.
I’d had an idea to make some wee wooden earrings and knock up some artwork for a wee test set for Margaret. They turn out pretty cute and she likes them 🙂
I little more work on another new song in the studio then I light up a chimney-full of charcoal for the grill and cook our burgers…
STRAIGHT into the studio to try and switch up the latest song idea.
What i’ve got is a bit repetitive and it needs a chorus or middle eight.
I record another very rough version and end it to my pal Chris who, I hope, will be able to add some drums on the final version.
After lunchtime arancini I try and sort out a revamped ’linktree’ style landing page for my website. it’s tricky trying to get it to work across mobile and desktop devices but I manage to come up with fix that’s not too much of a compromise.
We’re staying at Catriona’s tonight and Margaret heads off late afternoon….I’m going on the bike so finish off some more work then have a nice 27-mile cycle ride to Doune 🙂
I finish an order for a bunch of these Ben Lomond key fobs..they’re available on my West Highland Way Gifts website 🙂
THERE’S a bit of a scrabble to get the order for Ben Lomond leather key fobs finished…Margaret sews them up and I do the edging, add the rings and box ’em up ready for the post.
In the studio I continue tweaking the new songs and after lunch we go to the dentist.
My checkup goes fine other than something on my tongue that the dentist is slightly concerned about. I’ve to go back in three weeks for them to poke around a little more.
I walk back home while Margaret gets her checkup and drives back.
Back in the studio I record a ‘pre-demo’ of one of the new song ideas then get busy creating a new linktree-style landing page for my website.
Again, time has flown by and it’s time to take dinner along to Betty and Joe…
STARTING to feel a bit under pressure to finish of the new songs for consideration for my album project.
There’s two that are 99% ‘there’ but one of the ideas is still going round in circles and needs developed. Fast!
And the three string guitar boogie isn’t much more than a riff and some ‘placeholder’ lyrics. Need to get a move on.
In the studio I manage to focus on one of the songs…then the guy from the solar company arrives to check our our house’s suitability for solar panels and storage. Once he’s done, Margaret heads into town to get some shopping and I start off a run of leather keyfobs to fulfil an order from the West Highland Way Gifts’ website.
Back in the studio I have a mentoring session with a social media guru via Help Musicians. It’s part of their album support package and very useful.
I manage to develop the third new song and re-write the lyrics onto something more meaningful. In between times I nip to the office to dye the keyfobs…hopefully I’ll get them finished tomorrow.
It’s nearly 9pm when we have dinner then wander along the road for a drink with Barbara and Thorsten. Good to catch up!
I have a brainwave and instead of throwing out the frozen messed up watermelon I make some sorbet. And it works!
MAIN job today is to revisit one of the new songs we listened to on the way to Inverness. Margaret wasn’t sold on some of the lyrics and I felt I was ‘singing the changes’ on the chords.
I spend some time trying to knock the song into better shape then take a break to make some watermelon sorbet! There’s half a watermelon in the outside fridge that got frozen – rather than chuck it out I thought I’d give the sorbet a try.
It’s very simple and by the time my Kabuto noodle pot (vegetable laksa if you must know!) the mixture has finished churning in the ice cream maker and is looking good. I transfer it to a tub and stick in the freezer.
Back in the studio I record an new demo of the tweaked song and try to move some of the other ideas along…I need to get onto recording them properly ASAP.
I play Margaret the latest demo and we both agree it’s better. Still needs a bit of work, but at least it’s headed in the right direction and stayed out the bin! We have some of the watermelon sorbet…it;s pretty good!
The day has gone by the time I emerge from the studio so there’s only time for a short walk before I light the pizza oven…
AFTER I’m through with my first Zoom guitar student of the day I start editing up some footage from the trip to Belladrum at the weekend.
I elect to pull together a wee vlog-style short that I can spin into my Wildcats’ Facebook livestream later tonight.
Early afternoon I transplant some of my butternut squash plants. The seeds I pulled out a squash while cooking one night and stuck in some earth sprouted nicely and since transplanted into grow bags. They’ve continued to thrive now and need a bag per plant. I transplant them and improvise some trellis with garden canes and green garden wire. Curious to see if they ever fruit.
Once the Belladrum video is sorted I set it to export and go a quick walk during which I post some livestreams and reels promoting my Wildcats’ livestream later.
Back in the studio I spend a little more time on the songwriting before a little prep for the livestream…then it’s time for another Zoom guitar student.
There’s not much time between the en don my Zoom session and the livestream…and I’ve not solved any of the technical issues that have been blighting my livestreams over the last few weeks. As a workaround I add my wee webcam to the scene collection and use that…the audio/mic is pretty crap, but at least it’ll be in sync.
All goes well and by 9pm I’m back home and having dinner. Phew!
IT’S after 10am when we wake up at Matty’s….no hangover, but aching from head to foot. Think I maybe overdid the jumping around on stage a bit last night!
We have a coffee and a bacon roll then hit the road back home stopping first at Briar for a snack then in Perth for some shopping.
Our final stop before home is to drop in and see Catriona and the kids.
Sun’s shining when we roll up at the house and unload the shopping and gear. There’s a fair bit of tidying up and putting away to be done before we chill and have dinner.
WE’RE up at 7am, showered and on our way north right on schedule.
Margaret does the first driving shift and I finish the trip to Matty’s in Inverness where we’re staying. We drop off our overnight bag, pick up Matty and head to Belladrum.
The sun’s shining when we arrive on site and accreditation, load in and parking is quick and easy.
There’s a few hours to take on the festival atmosphere and have a couple of beers. We watch a bit of Kyle Falconer, Mason Hill and – one of my highlights – a new band called Pizza Crunch.
At 8pm I hit the Ice House stage. Engineer Gordon is on the case and nails the sound pretty quick. I enjoy my hour on stage and there’s a good crowd….I’m pretty knackered…not sure if it’s post covid or I’m not match fit.
We load out then go back to watch Ash and Edwyn Collins then head back to Matty’s for a snack and a nightcap…
