Gigs! Gigs! Get your gigs here!

A number of you have asked about what gigs we've got coming up (no really, literally more than one has asked!), so here's the current plan:

18 August - The Barbican, York. B-Fest, opening the afternoon session. Beer and music, what's not to like? http://www.yorkbarbican.co.uk/whats-on/b-fest-18/

8 September - Norton Indoor Bowling Club, Malton. Malton/Norton Charity Musicfest. Solo set from Drew. Bit of bass work supporting this charity event.

26 September - Can't tell you yet, it's a secret, Central York. Whole band set @6pm. Make it your business to be in town.

TBC - The Mended Drum, Huby. A full evening with The Southern Wild, who could say no? https://www.themendeddrum.com/

2 December - The Winning Post, York. Full band set with Dan Webster. More details nearer the time. http://winningpostyork.co.uk/

Full Band Gig!

A gig you say?
A band you say?
What's all this about then?

Yes indeedy the band has its first gig. We'll be supporting The Dan Webster Band and Vesper Walk at The Woolpack on Wednesday 23rd July.

We're working on a couple of approaches for the band; some gigs will be with a full drum kit and electric geetars and amps and all that stuff, some will be stripped back with a cajon and acoustics. York's music scene being what it is* I expect we'll be doing a lot more of the latter.

This gig will be of the stripped back variety and we're currently working on a set list that should give a nice mix of some new songs, some old songs and a couple of re-worked ones.

Finding places to play original music in York is not the easiest thing nowadays, and this will be one of the last gigs that the Woolpack puts on. That's a shame but all the more reason to come down.

So we've got some songs, we've got a gig, but of course we're still working on a band name. Any suggestions? Pop 'em in the comments.
Stay well
Drew

* I'm not having a dig at the York scene by the way, we have an excellent crop of acousticky-type musicians in York and a lot of venues and pubs who support them. Trying to get a full band gig of original music means a lot fewer options though.

Ghost blogs and gig

This blo-og, is comin' like a ghost blog etc etc etc.

Firstly, last minute gig news: Out of nowhere, a gig appears! I'll be playing at the food festival on Parliament Street at 7pm, and later on I'll be playing a bit of bass with Dan Webster. There'll be food, beer and music - what more do you want?

Secondly, we now have a band. Yes indeedy, although I'm very sorry to say goodbye (musically) to Dr Jones now that she's in Sheffield, both a drummer and bass player have now been recruited.
We have obtained rehearsal space and are knocking up some songs.
You wouldn't call it "Rock", but it's definitely a bit more like that than what I've been doing for the last few years.
More updates will follow when we sort out some gigs.

Of Opportunities and Appetites

As some of you may know, at the end of July I took the opportunity to leave my day job. I'd been there a while and as a result I got a reasonable payout - not a retiring-to-the-caribbean type payout, but a don't-need-a-new-job-straightaway kind.
A number of you who knew about this have asked me if I'm going to take this as an opportunity to try and do something professionally (i.e. full time) with the music. Some of you have even tried to persuade me to do so ;¬)

I've given it a lot of thought, and I've sat down and done the maths, and it doesn't add up.
Trying to make a living playing your own music is hard. Really hard. I know a few professional musicians, and I know a couple who are doing it sticking to their own songs. At the end of every month they're scratching around wondering how they're going to pay the rent.
And they're better and more established musicians than me.

Maybe if I was ten years younger, maybe if I didn't have the shared commitments I now have, maybe if I still had the backing from the label, maybe then (in fact probably then) I would have given it a go.

But I'm not, I do and I don't, and, to be frank, I just don't have the appetite for it anymore. I sometimes think that to succeed in the creative business you need a certain kind of delusion that gives you enough self-belief to try and persuade others to believe too. I remember hearing a radio documentary about Bob Dylan years ago where one of his friends explained how Dylan invented a back story for himself; when he went down south he told people that he was already this successful musician in New York, on the verge of breaking into the mainstream.
I don't have that kind of delusion or drive. For the past few years mostly I've just been tired.

So I'll keep doing some open mics, and the acoustic sessions with the double bass, I'll probably keep recording the odd song here and there as well, but actually, at the moment, that's enough.

Late Notice Gig in York!

Tonight, that's sunday night 5th August, to celebrate the pub's 10th birthday, I will be playing at the Rook and Gaskill along with a whole host of other folks.
Free to enter, full line up below:
11ish Mr Pants and the Spectacles

10.00 David Ward Maclean

9.15 Aimie J Ryan

8.30 Lee Parry

7.45 Drew Stephenson

7.00 Chris Barnes

4.45 Rookoustic 120, two hours of the world's best open mic.

4.15 Zack Ford

3.30 Liberty Hutchinson

2.45 Amy Greene

2.00 Jane Stockdale

1.20 Adrian Spendlow

Furhter details for Facebookie types: https://www.facebook.com/events/387352334652242/393858404001635/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity

Sorry about the late notice, was expecting to be working this weekend but find myself unexpectedly free.

More gigs

Just a quick note to say that Hils and I have a couple more gigs lined up, Waggon and Horses in York on Nov 12th then Verve in Leeds on Dec 4th.
More details in the gigs bit on the right.
Also things are beginning to come together a bit having moved house and I hope to have my computer and recording stuff properly set up soon, at which point I will start getting some of the new material recorded. Hopefully before I forget it.

What's this? A gig you say?

Yep, just a quick update to say that I'll be supporting the awesome Bosscaine and Johanna at the Fulford Arms on saturday 24th september. Music from 8ish and it's free to get in. Job is very much a good 'un.

Life has been kind recently

It's been a while since my last update; there are many reasons for this. Some of them are good reasons, i will share some of them; some of them are not good reasons but i may still mention them briefly, so that they don't feel left out.

I've been across to Florida for a wedding, down to Hampfordshire for some camping, up to the Lakes for a gig and some walking and played my first all-night-on-my-tod gig in York. These have all been good things but have contributed to the web-silence somewhat.
The bad reasons are that work's been busy and i am so very, very lazy. But let's move on from them, they have all the recognition that they deserve.

So let's move on in a going forward manner (a phrase which, i am convinced, is only two interviews away from a politician's lips) and i shall let you know what's happening in my tiny and insignificant segment of the world.

Firstly, we have a couple more gigs lined up, one in Ripon on the 18th of October, the other in York on the 4th of December (once again i find myself in the rare position of being able to give you plenty of warning). More details can be found, strangely enough, in the gigs section.
We might also have a gig on the 30th of September at the Theater Royal in York but i really don't know what's happening with this one (for any readers new to this site, his is the kind notice and organisation i generally provide).

Secondly, work on the album will be getting a kick-start in November. I know it's been over a year since we started it, but i've got a week booked in the studio in November and i'm hoping to get the bulk of the recording finished by the end of that month. I'd still expect a further couple of months of production and stuff before we get round to actually having anything saleable but hopefully we'll be able to get something out in the first half of next year.
You'll note i'm trying to add a trace of realism into my estimates!

But anyway, because i'm going to have to write, learn and practice a whole load of new guitar, mandolin, squeezebox etc parts for the studio work, I'm not going to be booking anything in over the next couple of months. All being well, come December we will have got our recording pretty much done and i'll start touting for more gigs.
Stay well

Gig and stuff!

ok, sorry about the delay from the last blog. The day job has been silly and things have had to take a bit of a back seat. But not all of it, no sir!
So tomorrow Dr Jones and I go into the Studio (here's a picture of her in the studio doing the pre-production session last month - i think she thought it was cold. I think i might be in trouble for this photo...) and then, once we've come out of the studio (otherwise it would be ridiculous) we're playing at the Junction in York.
It's friday the 21st so no work the day after for most of us (get them beers in!) and we'll be supporting local singer/songwriter Thom Piddock and also the eclectic and very interesting Katie and the Questions - they raise, stangely enough, more questions than answers...
But it's getting late and tomorrow i have to be up bright and early to go to the studio (WOOHOO! as homer simpson would no-doubt say). Well, not that bright and not that early, but the principle still holds dammit!
So if i don't see you before then, hopefully see you on the 21st.
stay well
Drew