Saturday 31st May 2008

7:18am. Warminster tonight. Can’t sleep this morning. Don’t think it’s because of the gig tonight. There’s just a lot going on in my mind at the moment.

I came alive last Saturday and the high lasted for the rest of the weekend. But then the daily grind hits which is a real downer at the moment. So my mind turns to the future and how we can develop the band, the act and the songs.

With the preparations for the gigs, new material has had to take a back seat, but I’m really keen to take the songs to the next level. It just depends on which direction we end up with. I don’t say ‘choose’, because you never know when inspiration hits.

I’m full of lyrics at the moment, some up, some down, some good, some trite in the extreme.

That’s the trouble with influences – they fly in from all over the place.

If only we had more time. Rehearsals and jams always produce good ideas from Russ, Colin and Bev. We gel together so well these days. We really need time and space to develop those ideas as you ain’t heard nothing yet. The sheer potential of this band and the individuals in it is awesome.

It’s also like having another family, someone to welcome me home, wherever I am with them. With the travel into the day job, it means I can read. I’m into rock biographies at the moment – obviously looking for hope and inspiration. This does have an impact on the way I write. I tend to study how other writers construct tunes, chord sequences etc. I’ve rediscovered the Who through this. Although the biogs of Keith Moon and Pete Townshend inevitably focus on extra curricular activities, the music’s the thing, especially with Pete. I’m onto Joe Strummer now so The Clash are very much to the fore. God knows what Bev will think of that.

I’m also into spirituality a lot at the moment. I’ll go into the reasons why in other blog entries. It’s not as if I’ve suddenly found God. He’s always been there. But I’m trying to live a more spiritual, balanced existence and do something good with my life, rather than just keep running on the hamster wheel for money. And that’s where writing and Sun Machine come in – soul food!!!

Tim