13.03.1510 years is a long fuckin' time to be in a band!
From the tale of my teens to the beginning of my thirties I’ve been sticking my shades on and making a racket. Damien (the Chewy to my Han) has asked me to start blogging, something I’ve not done since the halcyon days of Myspace, my remit “Just write something about the band man”. Now that we have this mighty fine website I figure it's as good a time as any to indulge.
I’ve never considered myself a musician, in the true sense, as I have never had lessons or studied theory. Similarly when I tell my wife to take two paracetamols for her headache I don’t consider myself a doctor. Writing is the part I enjoy most and it’s the reason I’m still at this band business. Many of the subjects I would like to explore here are quite heavy and some form the lyrical themes of the songs, It would also be interesting to interview some some folk like the old days - but for now I’ll keep it simple and “Just write something about the band man”.
Year 14 of the 3rd Millennium
Summer 2014 marked 10 years of The Senton Bombs, a whole decade since we first took to the stage at Blackpool's West Coast Rock Café as The Terrorists. We didn’t make a big deal of the anniversary as it serves as a bit of a measuring stick. For all the progress we've made there remains the fact that 10 years is a long time – could we have done more?
Emphatically - Yes. Our formative years were hindered by immobility and a lack of ambition to go further. It's hard to admit but I don't think we truly believed in ourselves back then. Too many unpredictable live performances and the inability to capture our live sound in the studio make for good excuses - but the real truth is likely found at the heart of our makeshift musicianship and the fear of being found out.
As years went by our collective confidence increased as the recordings began to resemble the sound we thought we were making. We got better at playing too, more cohesive, more conscious of dynamics and hooks - you know, the good stuff. With belief came adventure, the band beginning to serve as a vehicle, allowing us to travel to new places we'd have likely not visited. We also finally reached the point of not giving a fuck any more and, strangely, it's been upward motion since.
Last year was another big one for us. After signing a record deal with Holier Than Thou Records to handle the digital releases, we recorded some tracks which became the Phantom High EP. STP Records put it out on a Limited Edition run and we hit the road harder than ever. A few months aside for the birth of my daughter Evelyn, the coolest of little ladies, we were left with 8 months to fit in 42 performances including a UK Tour and two mini-tours of Denmark (Where we met some of the of the finest people on the planet).
When five people are crammed in a car, on planes and trains, traveling long distances over many hours – amusement is required and fortunately never far away. I could tell many stories from our travels, some incriminating, some hilarious, some emotional - however, rock-enthusiast, wannabe male model and SB Tour Manager Kalum O has vowed to keep all appraised of such tales in his ‘Road Stories’ blog. Safe to say - 2014 was an awesome year.
Marching On
Already into March and we're still grafting away in the studio, although we do have lots of exciting gigs on the horizon. Lots of trips to the capitol, festivals, as well as some choice venues around the UK (really looking forward to Fuel Rock Bar, Cardiff and Satans Hollow, Manchester). We’ll also be announcing some European Tours to follow the release of the new album.
Phantom High is getting a digital release on HTT this month (23.03.15) with lead single ‘Lights Over Phoenix’ currently available for free download. Looks like we’re also set for a feature in Classic Rock magazine too. From the days of limited internet access, where several of us would gather around the print to read a Dave Mustaine interview, we always heralded Classic Rock as the top of the mountain. To get featured is more than just validation, it will allow me to try and impress my grand kids in 30 years time when I unveil the dusty copy… likely followed by questions of “what’s a magazine?”.
Most importantly - album number four is in progress. Thirteen new tracks, working with our regular producer (and original drummer) Ronnie Bomb. As with our previous albums, there is a concept/theme running throughout. Sweet Chin Music echoed the ‘end of youth’, Gambit looked at a ‘Life-Game analogy’ and Chapter Zero covered ‘Stories/Cycles’, album four delves into the esoteric - death/rebirth, secrets and conspiracy. Personally I think we've finally cracked it - something I could live with if it was our last. We have a prospective release date and a launch party already booked, just a little way left to go.
To conclude - a decade down and there’s still plenty of gas left in the tank. The highs, the lows, the plateaus… there's nothing quite like being in a rock band, here’s to more of the same. Cheers folks. JC