Recording - day 1 - 30/05/09

"Some storms have names"

My dad is always telling my profound things. I always have this urge to impress him with the knowledge I've gained from my own learnings but he still always manages to win and astonish me with his insight into life. I'm from a family of control freaks. A great family and one that I love. Some artists come from unhappy families well I didn't, thankfully.

Last year my dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer. A cancer that seems to be extremely common these days with the older blokes. Anyway, around that time there was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald that my dad read. The article was about how we try and control our lives and how we strive to be happy. It questioned "happy". It kinda spoke about accepting reality, being a realist and letting go. My dad gave it to me because, well he thought it was an interesting read but also because I have my own demons around control. After we found out about my dad I felt pretty numb, unsure and worried. Worried for him and my mum. I started thinking about losing my dad. Both my parents are now in their 60s. It feels like a fragile period. So I read this article and it really made sense to me.

After visiting my folks I wrote "Some Storms Have Names". It's a personal song and is about my own struggle for control in my life. Struggles with anxiety, the reality of my dad's situation and the small things we worry about like a white spider on the wall and up a notch to a plane ride. I have a fear of flying.

I didn't intend for the lyrics to be a particular way or think about the theme. It just seemed to come out. I think at the time I was quite angry and worried. The situation made me realise that the reality was that my life was changing. Not that things were bad but life in my family had changed.

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So Day 1

We arrived about 10 am at Blackbox studios. I was very nervous but eager to get started.
The goal for the day was to record the drums and bass for "Some storms have names" and "Take cover and run". It took a while to set up. Drums mainly and tuning. It was all very exciting. I love being with the band. It's a lot of fun but they are great people, great friends and really an amazing support to me.

We recorded takes for "some storms" and had a listen back last night. Magoo is amazing. The songs are already coming together. We've compressed "some storms" to be fairly neat but the feeling is there. The drums sound fantastic. Already i want to get this song out but patience is a virtue I truly need to improve.

Terry's bass lines are always right on the note. He's a classic bass player. Very rare now. I've never worked with anyone as talented as him and he's an absolute gem.

We managed to get the drums and bass for "Take cover and run". This is different from "Some storms". I'll talk more about that one later.

I'm very happy with Magoo. He's very concise and is steering us well I reckon.