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Welcome to the latest edition of “Inside Track”, the newsletter that tells you all you ever wanted to know about the rock band AFGM! Since our last communiqué in the autumn of 2006 once again there have been various developments, experiences and expenses, and yet AFGM continues to be a huge amount of fun if somewhat frustrating at times. Perhaps the most important development is the addition of female backing vocalists. This has been planned for some time but it has taken us until early 2007 to finally all rehearse under the same roof! The girls have added a new dimension to the AFGM sound and whilst rehearsals continue apace we have been able to breathe new life into several old songs that had fallen by the wayside – “Outta Here” is a prime example! In addition, our collective thanks must go to our esteemed vocalist and keyboard virtuoso, “The Very Reverend” John Telfer, for his musical creativity and hard work in sorting out some vocal harmony parts. We are a little way from having a full set of backing vocals but the will to succeed is there and when we are all playing and singing at full tilt in rehearsal the sound is awesome! In October 2006 we played some more shows as tour support for the legendary Wishbone Ash; this tour included a couple of very successful shows in Wales and an absolutely storming (and completely sold out) show at The Fleece in Bristol. People were taking turns to breathe it was so hot in there so imagine what it was like for us all on stage! Wishbone’s legions of fans were extremely receptive to our music and we have had a number of them contact us. We have also appeared on the Wishbone Ash website forum, again with some very favourable comments and compliments, and our friendships with Andy, Muddy, Bob & Ray have grown and developed since then. They are true gentlemen and have been unfailingly helpful to us in all respects – we expect to play some more shows with WA in the autumn of 2007 but for the spring tour we are doing just one, on Sunday 22nd April 2007 at Gloucester Guildhall. Dave MacMullen of MacKeys Music (Pro Tools engineer for The Corrs and David Bowie) has continued to provide assistance as our own INFAR Studio facility converted to Pro Tools and a full digital system. David gave several days of his time to help set up and configure the studio and the cabling, and did not charge through the nose for it either! Cheers mate, even if most of us don’t even know where the “on” button is. On the subject of recording we have decided to ditch the tracks we started in August 2006 and basically start again – we’re such perfectionists! We now have the capability at INFAR (which stands for “It’s Not F***ing Abbey Road”) to record the full band, with a Roland TD20 electronic kit, BFD digital drums, Pro Tools, a rack of expensive digital stuff and most importantly a guitarist/engineer with a brain the size of a planet to make it all work. So, the suggested release date for the (untitled) 4th album will not be “Summer 2007” as previously announced – we will keep you updated but in the meantime we have an album blog on www.bristolrocks.co.uk and this will give you an idea a) of where we are with it and b) what a bloody nightmare it all is trying to get us together for long enough to record anything. In the meantime our esteemed skin beater Mike “Dangerous” Dawe has recorded (and has ready for release) a solo project, a CD where (assisted by “The Professor” Chris Melhuish) he played and recorded some extremely complicated drum stuff! If you want one (it’s free) let us know via the band e-mail address afgm@btinternet.com If you have been onto the website www.afgm.org.uk recently you may have noticed we have added MP3 downloads of all of the three studio albums to date. The first two albums sold out and are now apparently collectors’ items as they have been appearing on E-Bay, so this is an opportunity to check out our earlier work for free. We do have a small number of “Deserter” & “Can’t Take it with You” available for sale (with original artwork, CD inserts etc) at £5 each, but you could always make up your own from the downloads. We are very much a live band as well as one that likes to spend hours with headphones on in a darkened studio; getting live dates for “original material bands” like AFGM is becoming more difficult in the face of covers bands, tribute bands and karaoke (all of which have their place, of course). Many venues just don’t want to take a “chance” despite the impressive musical pedigree and the list of tour supports we’ve built up. That is their loss we say, and we will continue to play on our own terms, not theirs. Our next “In Concert” outing is on Saturday 24th March 2007 at The Fleece, where we will be ably supported by “Crimson Sky” and tickets are a mere £7 in advance (£8 on the door); again contact us via the website, via the contact number 07879 640983 or enquire at The Fleece box office – it should be a great night if the last one is anything to go by. Look out for yet more new material (gasp) and re-workings of a few old favourites. Also look out for Mike Dawe’s sparkly new Ludwig snare drum (what a sound), Chris’s new guitar rig (Mesa Boogie & Fender) and various other bits ‘n’ pieces. Oh and of course pay special attention to the girl’s voices and the overall sound – we think you will be impressed. We are working on a number of new venues for 2007 & 2008, and a few festivals (Glastonbury & Ashton Court amongst them) and generally trying to raise the AFGM profile. Keep an eye on our website for future gigs and if you would like to see us play in a venue near you, let us know and we’ll get onto it. As ever our thanks are due to Dave “Ice Tea” Harding; without Dave’s back-room work it is most unlikely we would get anything done! He is an electronic engineer and has come to the rescue of broken gear more times than we care to mention. He also records the rehearsals, makes the CDs, gets posters and flyers printed up, makes the tea, and generally is an unsung hero. Well we ought to sing about him, very loudly! The Brothers Bailey are also there to fix our duff equipment, set up the guitars, sell us interesting stuff and are two of the friendliest guys you could meet. Just keep the AFGM faith. Thanks for being there. Best wishes AFGM (Mike Dawe, Chris Melhuish, John Telfer, Tim Martin, Jo Melhuish & Debi Hall) www.afgm.org.uk 2. and also….. You can buy the 'Radio Play' CD from Disc and Tape, Gloucester Road, Bristol - or by emailing a message to afgm@btinternet.com Mailing list members can still get a hefty discount! You can still buy the band’s last CD Cant Take it With You by emailing afgm@btinternet.com If you are in or around the Bristol area and want to know what live music is happening, see www.bristollivemusic.co.uk It’s a great site. Ents24 is another favourite, and you mike like to try www.bristolrock.co.uk If you know anyone else who you think would like to be on the mailing list, check with them first and then send in their email address or postal address. AFGM promise never to pass on any such details to other people. All the best afgm |