2009 May » Transit of Venus

May 202009

With the EP release not even a week past, we’re already making plans to get back into the studio. We’re popping in next week to record Wake Up with Dave at Miscreant Recording, and then the week after we’re recording Doing OK. I’m not sure if we’ll release these tracks so soon after the EP, but with Mike heading overseas shortly I really wanted to record some of the songs we’ve worked on together before he leaves. Might keep them sitting on hand for when we do a full length album, or I might get bored and release on their own. Really can’t say at this point. But I’m looking forward to recording anyway. Attempted some preproduction with the band today. While we made fair progress, it ended in me shouting at people a little. I’ve been a bit shouty this week. Think I’m just feeling the strain of a lot of things at the moment and stupidly taking out on the people who least deserve it.

The creation of music can be quite a frustrating process for me sometimes. Sometimes, songs just happen. Doing OK just happened in the fortnight leading up to the EP release gig. It was a simple little pop song I’d written on acoustic guitar, and I brought it to the band and we jammed on it and in no time at all it was this whole different song that I really love. Still needs a bit of spit and polish, but it’s the only song of mine right now I can actually listen to and enjoy. Usually with my songs by the time they’re constructed I’ve spent so much time with them that I’m sick to death of them. These are the songs that don’t “just happen”. Which is most of my songs most of the time. The newish one we worked on today (when we got bored of pre-production), definitely is taking some work to bash into shape but I am really pleased with how it’s looking so far. Looking? Sounding I should say. Yes I know I have a backspace key but I didn’t feel like using it.

We have a couple of gigs coming up. An acoustic one that honestly I don’t know any details for except that I’m playing with Plum Green (yay!) and another gig with the full band on the 20th of June for Jester Underground’s 2nd Birthday. And Jester Staples 23rd Birthday. More details coming soon.

Been getting hordes (or is it hoards?) of facebook messages and emails asking when the Meatmarket Music-Vid will be on youtube. As soon as it is available for viewing I will let you know I promise! Often I twitter when I don’t have time to blog, so if you follow me on there you might get the link a wee bit sooner than it appears here. http://www.twitter.com/kristieaddison

I need to start jotting down things I need to blog about as I think of them during the day. I feel like I’m forgetting something.

Thank you twitter… Here is an MP3 of a live recording of Doing OK from our last gig. It’s not pretty or polished but it is a taste of things to come. If you enjoy it feel free to past it on. Right click here and save to download

The morning after the morning after, only it’s afternoon

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May 162009

I am gradually working my way through the backlog of housework that had built up over the weeks leading up to the EP release. My lounge floor is littered with guitars, shoes, cups, a disassembled piano.

It feels like the end of an era. It was as far back as 2005 that I began mucking about with home recording on my computer. Decided I wanted to write songs that felt right to sing along to in the car. Many of the songs on the EP have been sitting about half written for a few years, a couple are newer, some we even played in Amperzahn even though they’d always been written for Transit of Venus. I never intended to put a live band together, it was always just a little recording project. Anyway, after all that time, all that writing and recording, wow you should see all the demos I have. But yes, whittled down to the five favourites that were finished off with Miscreant Recordings and released through Black Doris Music. And we have it. A product. A little plastic square containing a little plastic circle upon which five songs have been etched with the magic of laser beams. The first Transit of Venus EP. The pre-EP era is over and the post-EP era begins haha

The EP release party was incredible in itself. It was so much fun, but the piano playing bit was scary! I have to tell this little story… When I was a kid, maybe 10 or 11 or thereabouts, I used to play in these piano competitions in Tauranga every year. One year I’d left learning my piece for the Memory class till the last minute. I basically crammed it the day before the performance. My teacher advised me to pull out of the class but I was cocky and adamant I could pull it off. Played through the piece at home on the morning of the performance, went fine. Got to the performance, walked up took my bow, walked over and sat down at the piano. Started playing. About 8 bars in my mind goes BLANK. I’ve stopped playing and I’m sitting at the piano in front of an audience made up of fellow young pianists, their moms and teachers, and worst of all a small panel of judges. My mind is spinning, I’m thinking “what do I do? what can I do?” over and over in my head. Eventually I get up, walk to the front and take a bow then leave the stage. Everyone claps and I am UTTERLY HUMILIATED. It’d be nice to think I had a laugh about it years later, but I’m an oversensitive child at heart, and even now I cringe when I remember it. Ouch. So when I decided to play piano at the EP release party, I am getting all these flash backs to that moment. I am sorry I was so nervous, my knee was shaking under the piano and I felt like that stupid little kid again. But thanks everyone for being so supportive, it felt good to play piano for you all even though I was a little terrified. It was a huge relief to get up on stage with the band. Mike was the one who talked me into getting a band together for TOV, when Tory agreed to come on board it really became a reality. For the EP release gig we had Tim on bass who is also a wicked drummer for a band called Turning Tricks. My highlight of the gig was Tim and Tory dueling on drums, it’s a point where I can take a back seat and enjoy their playing. I am in awe of good drummers!

My phone won’t stop ringing. I have lost many trains of thought today!

I’m gonna write some more about stuff later, lost my writing mojo haha. Thanks to everyone who came along and made it such an awesome night. Special thanks to Plum Green,Turning Tricks, Jester Events, Black Doris Music, Smoove (Clothing), The Dogs Bollix, all the wonderful contributers to the EP and the Meatmarket Music video. Just, thanks everyone. I could never have done this on my own.

Busy Times

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May 112009

With the EP release party coming up on Thursday I’ve been more than a little run off my feet. Today being no exception, I am about to leap in the shower then run into town for costuming. Awesome store on/near high st called Smooth is helping us out with some flash as clothes. Being that half the band seem to be male models these days I’m sure we’re gonna look smashing haha. Someone made a comment on you-tube as to whether I “dress like that to make up for my lack of talent” – no, I dress like that so I don’t look frumpy next to my seriously good looking band members. Ok, and a little bit to make up for lack of talent. But only a little lol.

Other things on my list to do include getting in serious amounts of piano practice, writing up thank you notes for all the people who helped out, making sure the VIP’s are (a) on the door list and (b) know they’re on the door list, making sure everyone I have ever met knows about this gig and has been harangued into coming along, print out set-lists, set-up Mikes guitar, change my strings, have a last minute band practice, cry about the tiny-ness of the piano rise, cry about running out of time to get my favorite shoes fixed, buy some new shoes (?), get hold of the right cable to make that piano run through the PA ok, put up some way to late last minute posters…

Ok I got daunted by beginning to write that list. It’s practically endless, and there are three other people with similar lists.

Anyway, I’m gonna stop whining and leap into action.

See ya Thursday! xxx K