Kevin -
"It
all began for me when I was approached by Ally Manson, an old friend, and fellow
member of the seminal Heavy Metal band in Caithness – Discrepancy
- (featuring Dave Custer, Dave Morris, and a vast myriad of drummers!) to form a
band again. When the words “just heavy metal, no thrash” were mentioned,
along with the possible involvement of Kenny Manson (Ally’s brother) as
vocalist, I declared my interest.
After
nearly 10 years of bedroom guitarring, I was now keen to strut my stuff in a
band again. Little did I know the reality.
It
only took a week or two of rehearsing to realize that we could be quite good,
with some concerns about ‘certain’ people. These concerns came to a head
when Kenny left the area, and country to start a new job in the Channel Isles.
Ally, feeling a bit abandoned without Kenny, was none too happy at our choice of
replacement – Boots (AKA Graeme Robertson, AKA ‘The Metal God’).
As
soon as Boots entered the fray, friction began to rear its ugly face. Boots and
Neil had formed an unholy alliance, and the tomfoolery went unchecked. Each band
member was given a nickname, and they were only ever referred to as such. I was
‘The Gunslinger’, apparently because of the way I play the guitar, with my
feet apart. Neil became ‘Neil Pert’ because of his love of Rush, and ‘cos
he has such pertness in the chestal area! Paul became ‘The Marlboro Man’
because of his penchant for Marlboro cigarettes. Ally was dealt the harshest
hand of all – he was referred to as ‘Fabien’.
And
so it went on. A few gigs here and there, a little bit of interest from the
younger set, some encouragement from the older crowd. Throw in much buffoonery.
But things were not right. Trouble was just round the corner, ready to leap out
and kick us in the erse.
Ally’s
discontent was noticeable, and beginning to cause problems. I will not say here
who instigated it all, nor who was to blame, but the truth was – Ally had to
go. A Band Meeting was called, and all five of us sat round a table together for
the last time.
After
the deed was done, much acrimony ensued, with some sections getting more blame
than others. Such is the way of things.
When
the dust settled, we realized that we were now without a Bass player, a PA
system, and really, without a band organizer. Say what you will about Ally, he
would always get things organized.
So,
we set out on the search for a replacement. Immediately Paul suggested his wee
brother. Already known as a guitar player of some repute, he was easily
persuaded to join as Bass player, subject to the procurement of a Bass guitar,
of course!
The first rehearsals went well, and Paul’s brother was christened “Cleft”, after
Cliff
Burton (!). Cleft fitted in well, and things went well in rehearsals. And soon
we were ready.
Next
on the agenda was a huge gig at the Redwood Lounge, our first headline
appearance, to celebrate Neil’s release from BT Hell. Much rehearsal ensued,
and all was well up until the Saturday of the gig. After a night of drinking
vodka, lager, and more vodka, I went to work feeling very hung-over. As the day
went on, I began to feel progressively worse – culminating in me being very
ill at half past five in the evening, and once I started, I wouldn’t stop. I
went home, straight to bed, not to appear again until Sunday evening – God I
felt hellish!
So
the gig went on without me – some reports said it was quite successful, with
Stevie Taylor filling in on a couple of songs, while some reports said it was
“crap”. I don’t know. I do know that it was not how we wanted it. We were
itching to redress the balance.
And
so it was that we again found ourselves in the Redwood Lounge, at one of those
infernal ‘Blue Monday’ get-togethers. If I may say so, we played a blinder.
Even the report in the local rag said so – “Definitely the best of the
younger bands”!!!
Alas,
it was not to last. Neil had already announced his desire to flee the county,
and enroll at Perth College as a student Sound Engineer, which he duly did. And
is.
With
the departure of Neil, the band was really at an end. Musically we had started
to divert a bit from the original ideals, and the interest from us all just was
not there anymore.
And so ends the story……but the memories will always be there!"