College Green, Bristol.
We were sat on the grass playing chess.
Yeah, literally.
Chess.
That's what we did sometimes between sound check and gig.
I mean, Russ (our guitarist) and I did.
Andy, Marcus and Paul would be on the cans and smokes, sitting around, chatting, laughing.
It was nice.
I felt good about where we'd come in the last 12 months...
The scores of sweat-drenched sold out gigs we'd played headlining and supporting the bigger boys.
The reviews pouring in...
"Dirt pop basement rock... There's a car crash, in one car Howard Devoto's Magazine. In the other New York's Interpol. Emerging from the wreck..."
The tracks demoed in readiness for recording our debut album.
The video we'd just cut for the first planned single.
Our own Indie club night in Cheltenham.
And then as Russ skilfully moved knight to king 4...
"I'm not sure I wanna do this anymore."
Did I hear him right?
"Yeah, this. Hauling ourselves around the country, playing for next to nothing, dealing with the promoters - the 'you get paid if you bring the audience' shite.
I'm jaded. Too old."
BOOM!
What? I was mid-twenties. I felt like I belonged here. I wasn't too old.
Was I?
I countered his knight to king 4 and changed the subject.
Get the gig played. We'll be okay.
A couple of days later Andy, our drummer, called me.
"You know I've deferred before but I cant do it again…
I'm going to uni."
Fuck.
And just like that, we imploded.
Just like a hundred thousand other bands.
We share that story.
(Probably minus the chess).
But here's the thing.
We never played a goodbye gig.
We never changed our socials from "Transit Cop" to "Transit Cop RIP" (yeah, that literally was a thing!)
I couldn't bring myself to officially end it.
So I didn't. I kept it wrapped up, resolved that one day we'd be back on the stage together. Back in the studio.
And here's another thing...
This happened exactly seventeen years ago to the day I'm writing this. April 14th 2007.
Yeah, seventeen years. A lifetime ago.
And here I am. Talking to you. With this to say…
I got us back together.
All of us in the same room together for the first time (save a wedding) for seventeen years. Just for a few meet ups. A few drinks. A couple of jams.
But why?
Maybe now is the right time?
It feels like it is...
Maybe that now we don't live in the indie landfill era we used to (when every boy and his brother was in a guitar band) our music will have the chance to cut through the smoke and feedback and shine like it could have.
But fundamentally, I think the "why" is because I missed my pals and the music we made.
Anyway, back to the story.
We talked about the material we recorded but didn't release, that we could refine, remix, and remaster.
So we did, and it's out soon...
"Shake Out Your Sorrow"
Five glorious tracks that have aged better than I could have dreamed of.
This is a big deal for us... so please give a few minutes of your time and take a listen. It'd mean the world.
I think you'll like it.
I want us to get back in the studio soon and make that debut album, now.
Working on that. Let's see.
We've taken the first next step of whatever journey this turns out to be. And whatever it is I'm happy to be on it with old friends and brilliant musicians.
Transit Guy
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