THE USUAL Monday routine – early alarm to get the sourdough in the oven, coffee and email/socials while it’s baking and cooling down then breakfast.
Another busy week beckons kicking off with an online guitar student.
Priority after that is a video edit for Hellbound Train, the second single from the album. Two reasons for the urgency – first is to let Wildcats’ see it in tonight’s livestream. Second, I can’t put the news release and media resources together until the video’s finished.
I have a break mid-afternoon when my regular guitar student rocks up with her mum. Then it’s back to the studio to finish the Hellbound Train edit and edit another bit of live video for the livestream – Walk the Walk from the recent show at The Cluny, Newcastle.
Sometimes I question the need for the weekly Wildcats’ livestreams on Facebook as it’s quite a commitment. Then I realise that apart from keeping folks engaged it makes me play some songs live during gig-free periods and, also importantly, motivates me to edit up bits and bobs of video which then also serve as additional content for my socials.
I’m finished with time for a wander up the lochside.
There’s time to set up the livestream when I get back but my attention is diverted by an email from my aggregator (digital distributor) saying my Hellbound Train uploads have been rejected. Something to do with the title on the artwork and the song title in the metadata not matching.
Time’s already tight on this one so I investigate immediately and see that everywhere I have tried to type ‘Hellbound’ it seems to have been changed to ‘Hellhound’. Fucking auto-correct and my failing eyesight didn’t spot it.
Anyway, I get it sorted and manage to start the livestream on time…
AN EARLY start for the Kilmaronock plant sale – but no need for an alarm as Freya’s through early doors, followed by Aaron, to jump all over papa.
We leave Catriona to organize the kids and we head for Kilmaronock where we get alls et up in time for the 10am start.
It’s a nice day and Anna (and Skye, the rag doll) join us on our pitch.
Some familiar faces and new customers pass though. It’s good to catch up with folks and it’s as much a social event as a ‘marketplace’.
We’re home mid-afternoon and I have a nap before heading to the studio to set up the Bandcamp release for Come With Me. I like to make releases available via Bandcamp a few days before official release.
I get everything set up then start the video edit for Hellbound Train – the next single from the album – which drops on 6 June.
Suddenly it’s time to meet Betty at the local pub for dinner. We have a lovely meal then go back to Betty’s for a nightcap.
Back home we catch the end of our pal Bill’s livestream from Florida then bedtime…
STILL some stuff to finish off for tomorrow’s (Sunday) plant sale – then I sit in the sun and finish off two custom pewter kilt pins.
There’s a few things on the to-do list carried over from during the week that I take care of before Catriona and the kids rock up.
Margaret takes them all on a boat trip to island and I carry on working – this time in stuff for Friday’s release of Come With Me – the first single from the forthcoming acoustic album.
They’re back early evening and once the kids have gone to bed I get the grill fired up and cook some flank steak that I marinaded earlier…
LOTS of stuff to organize for Sunday’s plant sale at Kilmaronock so I’m busy in the office most of the morning.
We need some shopping and it’s my turn (according to Margaret!). I don’t have time to go into town so I hit the Aldi in Alexandria.
I have a phone interview for radio and a magazine at 4pm and only just make it back in time.
However, the phone doesn’t ring…and I only have an email contact for the radio guy and journalist. I email to make sure they have the right number.
A little while later I get an email profusely apologizing. A car prang is responsible…luckily everyone OK. Not sure about the car tho’. We re-schedule for next week.
I’m making lahmacun – a Turkish flatbread topped with spiced lamb mince – for dinner. I couldn’t get lamb mince but I found a discounted half leg of lamb which I butcher up and put through the mincer.
I haven’t made lahmacun in years – certainly not since we got our Ooni pizza oven two or three years ago…so keen to see how it works.
Turns out great! Much better than the oven in the kitchen which, I guess, was never able to get to the temperature to make authentic lahmacun.
I finish a bunch of one-off products for Sunday’s plant sale to see if there’s any interest
OFF to the community hydro society site first thing – we have a school visit this morning and myself and two other directors are hosting. I also offered to take pix.
I also take along some hydro-branded pencils as giveaways for the kids.
It’s a beautiful sunny morning…much better than the dismal weather than postponed the original visit a month or so ago.
I’m home by lunchtime and spend some time in the studio sorting out the photos.
Next priority is finishing off some ‘test’ items featuring Kilmaronock Old Kirk to see if there’s any interest at Sunday’s plant sale where I have a table.
I make a quick video saying I’ll be there, showing the products and canvassing pre-orders.
In the studio I tackle all the repertoire and release info that needs to be registered with PPL and MCPS. Laborious – but not half as bad as when we had to do it all on paper in duplicate!
LOTS of guitar stuff today. First up, an online lesson followed by an in-person lesson at the house.
I have a little time to get some things done in the office before heading off to the school in Balloch for a very noisy – but great – session with some of the kids. Might have to start taking earplugs!
I’m not long home when Fiona rocks up and we go for a paddle.
I’m home in time for Betty coming for dinner…Margaret tries out a recipe with salmon fillets on mascarpone and leek which turns out very nice 🙂
AFTER a Zoom session with one of my guitar students I get busy creating artwork for an idea I wanna push at Sunday’s plant sale.
Creating the correct artwork isn’t a straightforward job and takes a while. Once it’s done and my brass coin is processing I start tidying up the casting for another custom kilt pin.
I’ve left the PR/promo a little late for next Friday’s release of Come With Me so instead of general mail outs and stuff I target some influential folks at a personal level. I’ll get on the case now for the second single – Hellbound Train – which drops on 6 June.
Meantime I have a few interviews set up for the coming week and Come With Me gets its first airplay on Quality FM’s Rockin’ the Blues show.
My pal Kevin arrives after lunch and we spend a couple hours in the sunshine belthering, putting the music world to rights and chatting about our respective projects.
My first attempt at embossing Kilmarnock Old Kirk onto brass isn’t great so I spend some time revising my artwork for another go.
They take a lot of time so I plan to post them on my socials and canvas interest in pre-orders.
A nice evening walk up the lochside then dinner and an early(-ish) night. A full diary tomorrow.
Nine Pound Hammer – live at BluesAlive, Sumperk, Czech
USUAL early Monday alarm to get sourdough in the oven. It’s done by 8am and I go up for a paddle while it cools.
There’s time for breakfast – fruit and yoghurt followed by mashed avocado on fresh sourdough toast – then a session with a Zoom guitar student.
With approval for a custom kilt pin, I go ahead with a second version with different initials. It takes me a good five or six attempts to make a decent master for casting. I have time to do some castings but none of them pass muster so I abandon it while I go and edit some video from past shows to spin into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook. Nine Pound Hammer from BluesAlive in Czech, and Whisky Trail from The Cluny, Newcastle.
I suddenly panic about timescales to get the second single from the album – Hellbound Train – off to my aggregator (digital distributor) in plenty time for its scheduled release date of Friday 6 June. That means lyric files and artwork then upload of all with the audio and relevant metadata.
I’m a few days tighter than I would like but it’s there and ready for them to deliver to all the digital services.
I have the video edits finished and my prep done for the livestream with time to attempt another casting of the kilt pin. Another fail but I manage another pour before rushing back to the studio to go live.
The livestream goes good and by 9pm I’ve shut the studio and headed to the garden to check the last casting. Success! Thank fuck. This one has been a challenge.
Not out the woods yet, though, as there’s a lot of tidying and finishing work to be done,
