Alistair

I have started learning to use Reaper, with a lot of help from Nick. You can get a long way very quickly with Reaper. There are masses of learning resources available too. It's quite a daunting DAW initially but worth the time taken to understand it. I have generally been wary of the recording process but lockdown gave me time to get into it.

There has always been good music (i.e. what I like) and bad music (i.e. what the other guy likes) . There has been good music written by committee (Holland/Dozier/Holland) and bad music written by committee (too many to mention). The more some writers are original, the harder it is for other writers to be original. There are undoubtedly more bad songs than ever but because there is so much more music than there ever was. So perhaps the problem is more that there is too much music, and therefore the good songs are harder to find, so it seems that poor songs are the norm? I will grant you Meghan Traynor, though. And Death Metal. Nearly all death metal sucks. But that is kind of the point of it. And I wish music wasn't so damn easy to make and share these days so that people like me couldn't share our abysmal songwriting skills with the world

"If it wasn't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all" Albert King, Born Under A Bad Sign

My god, do you remember EVERYTHING? When did I tell you the name of my first band?

I'm sorry to have had to break it to you. And we split up. In 2008. But you can console yourself with our live album 'Nanny State' on my Soundcloud link below!

I think sideline is over-thinking it. If it sounds good to you, just go for it. If anyone passes comment on your band name at all that's a good thing as so many bands are just ignored. I was in a band called Box of Goats, but we weren't in a box and there were no goats. No-one said they felt cheated because there wasn't actually a Box of Goats. There are much stranger band names than Catch A Mojo. The moment someone asks you what it means is when you know they care.

No, long before Box Of Goats which was 2005-08. I'm talking 1981 to 1987! I was 20 to 26 at that time. I sent you a CD?! I apologise! I'll explore your Coltrane tip.

Lemmy

I have been listening to some Jazz. Nice! Specifically A Love Supreme by John Coltrane which is rather fine to say the least. I used to listen to a lot of Jazz. I'll have to start listening to more. Any recommendations? And I have been listening to my old tapes of songs which I wrote and recorded in the 80s. It's odd listening to my 22 year old self singing back then. I'm planning to re-record some of them and share them with the world at some point. The fun part is trying to remember how to play them. Time has been kind to some of them and not so to others. The tunes have endured but some of the lyrics are naïve, as you might expect. I am off to listen to Ian Hunter's new album 'Fingers Crossed'. Hi solo stuff is usually very good. Here's hoping.

The trouble with being a time machine driver is when the kids in the back start asking "Dad, are we then yet?"

Two cannibals were eating a clown and one says to the other "Does this taste funny to you?"

I have this album. I bought it not knowing what to expect. I did know that it is an album that divides opinion, mainly the vocal style of the singer. Nonetheless I was surprised by the combination of Jeff Beck's (relatively) restrained guitarings and the sometimes fake American-accented, sometimes cockney, sometimes sung, sometimes spoken vocals. I'm in the division of the opinion that thinks it shouldn't work but it does! But to answer the OP, I am listening to Ghost's album Meliora. Strictly speaking, I should hate Ghost, 1970's heavy metal meets CSNY, devil masks, high Catholic clergy schtick, singer looks like the Pope wearing a Halloween mask, no-one knows their actual identities. But they don't take themselves too seriously and the music is actually damned (pun intended) good. Here's the best track

I sold the 12 string and bought an Ibanez Acoustic Bass. Black and very nice.

It also depends what you mean by modern. The last 5 years, the last 10, the last 50? Turner can't touch lyricists like Tom Waits or Elvis Costello.He's clever, yes, but does he move me? No.