Getting the blog off the ground this year has undoubtedly been a positive challenge. Having to meet the self-imposed demands of its regularity prevents me from hiding behind a tempting pursuit of perfection and, perhaps more importantly, it’s got me writing way more prose and non-fiction than I would have otherwise.
That doesn’t take away from the fact that the majority of my 2024 has been spent working on the next Red Telephone album. We started chipping away at it late last year, but two weeks before our recording sessions in March, we realised that we were a fair way off being ready to commit it to record.
We’d already set a self-imposed demand of recording it as ‘live’ as possible – which meant we had to be able to play the tunes very competently as a band, rather than finding sanctuary in modern recording techniques (where each instrument is effectively recorded one at a time, and layered up until it makes a finished recording).
Facing the reality that we probably weren’t ready to get it done right, we slipped into solitude in Cornwall the weekend before sessions began, with the sole purpose of getting it over the line. Lots of coffee, Pepsi Max and the hospitality of our drummer’s parents supported our work. It was an effort, but the type that seems to make for the most satisfying life experiences.
The following weekend we arrived at the studio and put down the live tracks in two and a half days. Some overdubs followed, but ultimately, the tunes were recorded in one room, together as a band. Lots of Pepsi Max, tubs of brookies (Asda’s cookie/brownie combo), and Popeyes supported our efforts, as well as our committed producer, Steffan Pringle.
I’ve got no doubt that the somewhat arbitrary limitation of our own choosing – to do it live – meant we turned the album around way faster and in a more instinctive manner than we would have otherwise done. It meant we had to get comfortable with imperfections and problem-solve fast, but it also allowed us to use our instincts and get a real sense of achieving something communally in real-time – something which I believe risks getting lost with the more standard approach to recording music nowadays. In many ways, not having the flexibility or time to overthink things is an underrated luxury.
The first single from the album dropped on Friday, so I hope you’ll dive in and check out what we’ve been working on.
Streaming links: https://tr.ee/06T12h9q_u
The Devil’s Advocate
- Engaging with complexity can be a good way to learn, but it can also be a place of endlessly spawning, subtle temptations. It’s treacherous because indulging complexity feels like hard work. Sometimes it is, but a lot of the time it’s a convenient place to get lost, distracted and delay making the big moves.
The Thoughts of Others
- “You can’t take advantage of changes in the environment if you’re too planned.” – Nassim Taleb
