The Odd Folk Gardening Company

A two month absence!
We're not proud of that.
What an earth have we been up to?
Neglecting you for 62 days. Starving you of our news!

Rather a lot actually. The album has been completed, finally, after 7 months of mixing! Well not 7 months of mixing, but a couple of weeks of mixing spread carelessly over 7 months. The producer, who I must say has done a fantastic job on the album, unfortunately didn't do such a good job on time management and got bumble bee busy soon after we finished recording at Belan Hall, way back in the frozen and forgotten February. He went here, there and everywhere, recording Famous Person 1's EP, and doing live sound on Famous Person 2's UK tour, and then mixing The Very Famous Band's

much anticipated 27th album! It's been a difficult process, and one that stretched us (and therefore you) as many of you donated and have been waiting patiently ever since you pledged 3 years ago! In the end the producer ran out of time but we hadn't quite run out of ideas and so there was a week of hard talking, resolved by the bass player stepping in and taking over the final few mixes himself. In London in the fevered month of August, the bassist and I sat adding the finishing touches to the record. Together we worked long into the night, for 3 nights. He, having already done a full day's work in his studio, while I spent the days doing long-distance negotiating with our designer back in Cornwall. We were firmly bound to a deadline you see, it was as stressful a week as we've ever had. Well, it was for the bass player, the designer and I. The rest of them? They were oblivious! The piano player standing in the doorway of superstores flogging paintballs to Tom, Dick and Harry! (Actually, he did get dragged into it. We summoned him to London on the last evening to re-record the vocals on a track and then didn't even use it in the end!) The other two; the guitar player; well he kept his head down and focused on his new gardening business, and it's lucky he did as he was about to employ 80% of the band! The drummer became redundant! I know, right! Where are we going to get our bags of flour?

By the Friday we'd got it done; mixed and mastered, artwork all ticked off and duplication paid for. The deadline had been met and for a while it seemed like we might well launch her on September 12th after all! But no, no, no. Duplication said the units would be delivered back to us either Friday the 11th or Monday the 14th and no amount of pleading and under the table cash bribes could make them guarantee the former. So, with the risk of having an album launch with no albums, we scrapped it (again, for the 3rd time!) and took the next available weekend, October 31st, Halloween. Freaky...

For the record (excuse the pun) the units will arrive tomorrow, Tuesday 8th, so the duplication company really should have taken the bribe!

So, it's here, Haul Away, our brand new baby. 10 tracks of largely brand new and unheard material. With gorgeous artwork by Mae Voogd. It's very different but very good, at least I think it is? It's so hard to predict how it will fare. Will you love the new direction or lament the good old days? It's a raw and powerful record, with a real and true sound. A largely live record; the producer's got the sound and production spot on! It's a story record, a journey record. It'll take you places! This is my predictions...

In other news...

We played a few gigs over those lost months since we last wrote. A few weddings, a local ale festival with a drummer dep, the guitar player's cousin, a Mr. Jamie Brookes, a veteran funk drummer and quite a character. He learnt 14 songs in a day and smashed it. The gig, not his drums. Well he smashed them too cause he's a drummer, obviously. Not broken though, he didn't break them. You get the idea. He was great! And then Shambala Festival happened, and a great giggle that was too; big crowd, big fun.
Made us smile..

In real life; the guitar player now employs 80% of The Odd Folk. It's hard work but fun. We could become the first gardening company to play a gig while laying a lawn!

I promise we won't leave it so long until the next post folks.
Should be back to one blog a month from now on. Welcome back!

For all album info and tickets check facebook or the website :-)