May 17th, 2010 by Ed
I’ve not posted anything here for a while and I haven’t got any gigs coming up, but I have been reasonably busy. In the interests of brevity, here’s a quick roundup of what’s happened so far in 2010.
- I played guitar on a couple of tracks from the new Billy No Mates album, which I think is going to be called “Duck, Duck, Goose“. The album’s not mixed yet, but I’ve heard a rough mix of all the songs and it’s really good. Definitely one to look out for. I’ll update here when it’s finally released.
- Unfortunately the planned Billy No Mates tour in Germany fell victim to a bit of punk rock organisation and is no more.
- My new punk band, Liquidman, had a couple of really good reherasals with our new bassist, Damion Rice (formerly of The Killerest Expression). Rich switched from bass to lead guitar and it’s sounding great. We had a few potentials on the gig front, but they all faded away…then we all got busy and now it’s mid-May. Hmmm. Maybe things will pick up later in the year? Maybe I should schmooze more and go to gigs?
- The biggest news though is the fact that I’ve started work on a new Big Ray album. Yep, you heard that correctly. Let’s face it….the history of rock’n'roll is littered with pointless gestures, so what’s the problem with one more? The idea is to plug away and get it all finished by the end of the year. Over and above that there are no plans, but hopefully the process will get me off my arse and out there playing more acoustic gigs in 2011. I’m recording the acoustic guitar & vocal backing tracks with Rich Matthews in his studio in London and will then get the rest of the cast to add their material on top either in person or via the wonders of the Internet. So far lined up to play on the songs are Big Ray regulars Reado (drums), Paul Duncan (bass) and possibly John Ruscoe (guitar). In addition two of my favourite musicians, Michael Hampton and Dave Derby, both from New York will be continuing their Big Ray associations by sprinkling their own brands of fairy dust over the music from their respective home studios in the Big Apple. Michael in particular had a huge impact on “Business Class” so expect more of the same from him. Additionally I hope to rope in Mickey Trenter, Clive Watling, Li’l Lost Lou, James Allen and possibly some others to round things off. I’ll probably post odds and sods from the recordings as we go along before making the final thing available here for free as always once it’s done. In that spirit here’s a very ‘early days’ version of one of the new songs, “Shimmy“. Check it out now and then wait to compare it with the finished version in early 2011.
Shimmy (work in progress):
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Posted in Billy No Mates, Liquidman, Acoustic, Big Ray | 1 Comment »
March 11th, 2009 by Ed
Another acoustic gig for you! This time John Ruscoe and I are heading back to our old and much-beloved stomping ground of Ippo Rock City to play some tunes in the acoustic style. We’ll be joined by Reado from Big Ray on percussion & vocals and Rich Matthews (former guitarist with K-Line) who’ll be adding some bass textures to the odd song or three.
More important than all of that is the fact that Duncan Redmonds (Snuff, Billy No Mates & a million others bands) is headlining the evening. If you’ve not seen Duncan play his acoustic set before you’re in for a treat because the hits just keep on coming. Before we get to all of the above, the very attractive & talented Clive Watling (formerly of Elmerhassel & They Fight Crime) will be kicking things off in fine style.
The venue is Ronnie’s Bar in PJ McGinty & Sons pub in Ipswich. Doors will be open at 8PM and it’s £3 to get in. The date is Friday 22nd May. Stick it in diaries because this is one not to miss.
Posted in Billy No Mates, Acoustic, Big Ray | No Comments »
March 3rd, 2008 by Ed
More details to follow, but John Ruscoe and I are playing an acoustic gig in Cambridge in April. We haven’t worked out a set yet, but suspect it’ll be a mix of Sink and Big Ray numbers with the odd cover and maybe a new song or two. Hoping this will be the start of us doing it as a regular partnership, but we’re both really busy so it’ll be patchy at best. Looking forward to it though. Will post more info as I get it from the guys putting it on.
UPDATE: The promoters have a website at www.ciarafest.co.uk and tickets are on sale here.
Posted in Sink, Big Ray | 6 Comments »
January 17th, 2008 by Ed
Clearing out the garden shed just before Christmas I unearthed a box with a load of mini discs and 7″ vinyl; bit of a treasure trove truth be told. In amongst some other gems (like the Business Machines track) were three live recordings from the 1999 Big Ray tour of France. I’ve not listened to all three gigs that closely, but I have trawled through one of them, from Club Jimmy in Bordeaux, and edited out the half-decent songs. I’ll get onto the other 2 gigs sometime soon.
The line-up for the France tour was a one-off (i.e. not a seasoned outfit) so we had only just started to really get our shit together when the tour finished, but for all that there were some really decent moments onstage and it has to be said, it was by far the most fun tour I’ve ever been on. Great spirit all round, loads of laughs and our man, Didier Bouyer at the helm.
Points of interest from this particular gig:
- The Love You Gave Me is an unrelelased track that we were supposed to record for the Business Class album, but never did. Not sure why as it’s a decent song.
- This was the most poorly attended gig of the whole tour. Shame because it’s a nice club and everyone was very cool.
- Fluck was the support band.
- Recorded straight onto MiniDisc with a stereo microphone.
- We did a short set because there wasn’t much of a crowd; I dropped 4 songs for this post.
The Line-Up:
- Ed Wenn - Vocals and guitar
- Paul Duncan - Bass (2nd half of the set)
- Reado - Drums and vocals
- James Allen - Guitar
- Jason Green - Bass (1st half of the set)
- Sarah Parkin - Vocals
Posted in Big Ray | 4 Comments »
January 17th, 2008 by Ed
Just came across these cheesecake shots of myself, Jason and James that we shot one winter lunchtime in 1999 in Ipswich in preparation for the French tour later that year.
Posted in Big Ray | 3 Comments »
