Strange Days Indeed Reprised

Musings

I have had a slightly frustrating week with not too much achieved again to be honest. Having decided to not pursue frustrating but ultimately dead ends further there is a bit of a void right now. I haven’t been out for 4 days and I haven’t felt like it either. I have had a very weird week mood wise. Mildly depressed but doing stuff and somewhat confused about what to do, where to go next. I am drifting a bit.

The latest middle east US/Israel war on Iran has just kicked off too sadly.
It never gets any better does it?

Isaiah 2:4 (KJV): “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more”.

Today I have been staring out of the windows a lot in-between other stuff.
There is a saying “Its not over till its over”. But what if its over and nobody told you. Maybe you just didn’t get the memo? I am a little bit in lockdown mode again. I think my decision to not actively seek other musical opportunity’s at present was a sensible one. I can always change my mind but will remain open to offers so to speak. I have been chasing stuff solidly for about 3 years or so and apart from working with people I already know nothing has worked out really. I thought it was something I was doing wrong but I have realised it really isn’t. Of course the voice in my head will still always say “I haven’t done enough” though.

So I will just try and float on the breeze for a while at least as its better for my self-esteem and mental health. Maybe when the weather improves I will visit a few old haunts. I am at a tipping point of some sort. I don’t want to drive my self crazy just banging my head against the wall if possible. And certainly in the first couple of months of this year time has caught up with me a little plus concern abut Alsions various health issues problems.

Endings Perhaps

Musings


When I am getting on with stuff I can be happy enough to be honest. But I am giving up something in the sense that the almost fanatical gig at any price (tired, long journeys, not feeling well and so forth) me has really started to fade away. I have enough oomph for it to be alright on the night still but its a different world now for me personally and I cant approach it all in the same way anymore.

If my online stuff does well enough than maybe they will pick me up in a limo occasionally 😂

A few more significant people (proper writers musicians/composers) have taken a bit of an interest in my music in the last year to date. There is a tipping point and it may be that I am getting near to the threshold of being ‘seen’ to an extent, but more likely its just a blip. What’s redundant to be honest is chasing the live gigs, there will be some of course and I am not going to turn opportunity’s down when they do occur of course. But literally 1000s of people have heard and sometimes seen me play/perform that I would never play to face to face. I can expand on this certainly. Its is possible though that if I do live opportunity’s will eventually present themselves again but maybe not pubs so much.

I will not give up music unless forced to by ill health. I can expand on the video side of things considerably (I haven’t really fully embraced that yet) and it maybe that I should put energy into that. I do need more human interaction generally though of course. Well, we all have to adapt at some point. And let go of the old redundant ways though its hard to do.

Too much is never enough they say…

Diana Stone on vocals

I have had a bad day or two recently to be honest. Nothing to hold on to in the storm is how I am feeling right now. I do envy a little people of faith and their certainty. I am very unsure and currently very much battered by the winds of insanity… At times I do get a little crazy and that is where I am right now to be honest. Irritable and a bit paranoid and anxious.

1 John 4:18 (KJV): “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love”.

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A Crisis Of Faith

Musings

It may seem silly but the thought that I am now 69 hit me in a weird way. To me that’s proper old 😂 I suddenly had an oh shit moment and a feeling that this cant be me, can it? Sounds mad I suppose. Its all getting a bit ‘Sunset Boulevard’ now. Nurse bring the screens

The problem I have at the moment is the more I try to get stuff started the more disheartened I become. But its not just me it seems. The music I create is getting ever more popular which is of course satisfying on one level but unless I actually attempt to form a band I seem to be out of options. Forming a band is a lot of bother of course. perhaps more than I could deal with.

I have definitely hit a rock in the road confidence wise. I think all I can do is wait for spring and hopefully a reset will occur. I saw an ad on Facebook with a guy looking for a female vocalist to work with in a duo and it was interesting that he said this:

“Thanks everyone for the likes but can people just DM me if they are actually interested”. So it looks like basically nobody has responded. I get the feeling and a lot of others have said the same that things are just shutting down. People don’t want to leave the house. So its not just me and its not just my age and demographic either.

I don’t want to give up on live performance personally but if I could be content with just the occasional gig I would be happier. Trouble is that’s where things are and my tiny ape brain just can’t accept it. Worlds changed and I cant adapt it seems. So although I have done stuff, I do feel my self-esteem/confidence nose diving just a tad. In a sense any fix is actually not about what I do, its about how I feel about. That’s the hard part.

Things have changed a lot. The gig scene is mostly in terms of audiences either proper music fans or musicians, but a lot less casual punters now. That is a post covid effect. And also people cant afford to go out so much so they don’t or they save up and just go to special events. Pay £500 quid to go to a festival but never see a live band in a pub for free is much more the case. Redbourn Folk clubs getting such low attendances that they may have to pack it in apparently if things don’t buck up and many folk clubs in pubs are in a similar position as they don’t take enough money over the bar to keep the lights on. People are now going out in summer but staying home in winter to an extent as well.

I just haven’t got the oomph for anything at present. So maybe I should just wait until it comes back, if it comes back. In truth I am not motivated to go out much and there are plenty of opportunity’s. Maybe I am just making excuses not to go to OM’s and similar. I think its me as much as its everything else now.