Happy Daze

So, nine hours spent locked in a dark, damp old shed with a bunch of dodgy codgers might not sound like fun, but when it's Lane's End recording studio and my PigDaze comrades-at-arms I'm talking about it's a bit different. Our long-time HQ hadn't seen any action beyond rehearsal for a few years so persuading the legend that is Jim Murphy to pull the dust sheets off his console was cause for celebration. We managed to get two 'new' tracks sorted. 'Dumb' and 'Turn it Good' have been in the live set for ages; in fact the turnip song has been hanging around in various incarnations since the band's very early days, so it was about time we finally got them on tape. Whether they're released as part of an EP or we can get our collective arse in gear to record the rest of the next album is yet to be decided. We have the material, and then some, but as those who know will understand what should happen and what does happen are entirely different things for this raggedy back-sided, semi-dysfunctional skufflepunk combo!

The tour that never was gained another date this week as we had to pull from a gig at what would have been a new venue for us - the Coracle in Shrewsbury. It looks like being a pretty quiet year as things stand. Lots of venues are being understandably cautious, especially when it comes to taking a chance on unknown quantities. They seem to be leaning towards familiar Saturday night covers acts more than ever. That just makes it more important to support those venues that are showcasing originals artists', and it's why we're getting involved in booking acts for a monthly 'Kickback' night at Oscars in Ludlow. Anyone out there who can suggest a venue give us a tinkle or put a word in with them - let's see if we can spread the gospel according to PigDaze to an unsuspecting audience somewhere new.