AWAKE super-early to get the sourdough in the oven. While it’s finishing off I get ready for a paddle so as soon as it’s out the oven I can head out on the loch while it cools.
It’s kinda misty and grey but fairly calm and I have a nice paddle around the islands and do a couple of livestreams to remind folks that ‘normal’ service resumes tonight for my weekly livestream into the Wildcats’ Facebook group.
Back home there’s for a shower and breakfast – avocado on fresh sourdough toast – before a session with an online guitar students.
There’s more videos to edit for social media ads and then I get busy with some of the PR and promo for the new album and related live shows at the start of November,
Once phase one of the promo is done I edit a couple of videos from the live footage taken over the last few weeks so I can spin them into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream.
Suddenly it’s approaching 8pm and time to get online for the livestream,
After dinner I pack up a bunch of merch stuff and finally catch up with myself around midnight.
AFTER breakfast we help Mikey with his mobile and broadband accounts which seem to have got a bit mixed up.
I hit the studio and make another version of the video for the upcoming shows – one fast-paced video that covers all the shows.
When I get back to the house Mikey’s getting ready to leave. We have some lunch then it’s back to the studio to get all the album tracks, info and metadata to my aggregator (digital distributor) for the full album release on 7 November.
Next job is to create a shareable folder of assets to promote the album. Tagged MP3s of all the tracks, cover art, one-sheet etc…the link needs to go in the news releases and stuff.
I get it all finished just in time to meet Betty for dinner….
A still from the promo video for the upcoming Aberdeen show…
UP EARLY ’cos I wanna get into Glasgow and visit my pal Neil in hospital. I stop en route to get one stuff to take him and then park up at the Beatson.
We chat for a couple hours and I hope I’ve managed to brighten up his day a little.
I stop for some shopping on the way home, have some lunch then hit the studio…the to-do list is as long as my arm and although everything’s urgent I need to try and work out the priorities.
First up is a bunch of news releases not only for the full album release, but also the four ‘launch’ shows both regionally and nationally.
I get the releases all written but decided to leave the assets folder and links ‘til tomorrow and get on with making up some videos to use in social ads and posts for the associated shows.
It’s after 8pm when I get back to the house. Mikey’s arrived and I make some smash burgers before an early night.
I WAKE up with the fear – it’s release day for Good Friend Blues, the final single before the album drops and for some reason I haven’t set up the video premiers for today.
After breakfast, then, it’s straight into the studio. I also need to edit up a vertical format of the video for reels and other stuff around my socials.
The guy from the garage in Killearn picks up the car for a service and oil change. He’s also gonna check out our front parking sensors which are goosed and VW wants about £600 to fix.
I manage to get out for a walk up the lochside before an early dinner…then we hit the village hall for a quiz night, coming third with our team-mates Fiona and Sheldon.
At last. A paddle. First time on the water in seven weeks!
UP EARLY to get some artwork done for the Black Bull in Gartmore before Fiona arrives to go for a paddle.
I get everything done and finish breakfast just as she rolls up and we paddle to Port Bawn on Inchacailloch and back. First time I’ve been out on the loch since my cataract op seven weeks ago.
Back home I jump int he shower then we head into Glasgow to pick up a load of hoodies and Ts from our screen printer pal Kenny.
Next stop Costco and a quick snack then the optician in Milngavie for my post-cataract check up and new prescription.
On our way home we drop the shirts and hoodies off at the embroiderer’s and get back just in time for my guitar student arriving at the studio.
Once done I do a little prep for a Zoom interview with a music journalist in London.
While Margaret makes dinner I finish off an order of Conic Hill leather bookmarks. Busy day!
A BUSY day kicks off with a 9am session with one of my online guitar students…followed immediately by an in-person student.
There’s a 20-minute or so break before another online session then I get busy with some merch in the office.
With Good Friend Blues dropping on Friday I have a load of radio and other promo to do as well as making the track available to folks in my Wildcats’ Facebook group and on my email list.
Late afternoon we head to Doune to look after the kids. There’s some stuff to drop off at Europa Music so we take the kids into Stirling then back to Doune to wait for Catriona to get back from work.
It’s after 8pm when we get home and I try my hand at fish tacos for dinner…work out not bad at all.
WE SLEEP in…I don’t wake up ’til after 10am. Think our body clocks and routine are all away to fuck!
There’s so many different things needing done I’m not sure where to start and tackle random jobs to try and clear the decks.
I’d hoped for a paddle…or maybe a walk…but before I know it it’s well after 5pm and I have a guitar student coming at 6pm.
I get a bit of tidying done in the studio and a quick walk to the water before my student arrives.
Once done, I make the sugo for our Italian sausage pasta and stretch the sourdough before sorting some more stuff out in the studio.
After dinner I call radio DJ and host Abe Perlstein in California – I’m guesting on his show. I use an app called Yolla as Skype is no more and it seems to work OK.
Abe plays six tracks from the forthcoming Still Friends album and we chat between them. Grand.
Goodbye Beaumont et Avoine…we’ve had a great time…
A LAZY morning then we start packing and getting everything ready to hit the road.
Another lovely lunch with Dominque and Marie-Claude then we bid farewell and hit the road to the port at Caens.
It’s a fair drive and dark when we get to the port. After a snack at the terminal we get on-board the ferry, find our cabin and sleep all the way to Portsmouth,
At Bistro 64…grand wee venue and a nice way to finish my run of shows in France…
THERE’S been a lot of attempted fraudulent purchases through the Love Balmaha and West Highland Way Gifts websites over the last few days – a couple have made it through though…I refund them and mark as suspected fraud.
The issue is that I am still out of pocket re the transaction fees. They’re not much, but if I let it continue it could mount up.
Had the same on this website’s (davearcari.com) online store and an anti-fraud plug-in seemed to stop it…but it hasn’t worked on the other sites.
I decide to temporarily put both sites into maintenance mode for a few days to see if the fraudsters’ bots move on when they can’t reach the shop page/s.
There’s some stuff to do for the Black Bull in Gartmore then I do some last-minute promo for tonight’s show in Tours.
I’s not for – just 45-minutes or so – to Tours. We go ahead as we wanna grab some stuff form a supermarket to bring home (most are closed on Sunday)…Marie-Claude and Dominique are already at the venue when we get there!
Bistro 64 is small but has a good stage area and they host some good shows. We get loaded in, soundchecked and ready to hit the stage at 9pm.
The place is busy and get even busier as the jungle drums seem to beating and bringing folks in.
We’re back at the mill just after midnight. Marie-Claude and Dominique have brought pizza back – we eat and drink red wine until after 2am….
