First public show for Singing Steel.

I have spent the last week updating websites, except this one, you will have noticed!

That and tapping away at xylophones and kool drums.

Oh yes, and muttering lyrics in public whilst walking anywhere at all, rather like an elderly vagrant...with a golden retriever.

And snapping at close family in my stressed condition.

All because Singing Steel are playing on Saturday afternoon at our equivalent of the British arts council on their open day.

I have enjoyed our rehearsals so far, but they have been with a view to playing a few dates in February. (We didn't know that we would be playing tomorrow until a couple of days ago).

I have put up a couple of our rehearsal tracks on bandcamp so you can have a listen if you are curious about how metal and voice fit together acoustically. We will be recording something a bit more polished over the next couple of weekends to release as an album on the web.

It has been lovely to discover the hang drum and the other range of hand pan drums that Michael Colley plays. They have a large range of sound which can be gentle and subtly complex, but also quite robust, certainly inspiring for me to compose to.

And working with Drummerboy for the first time has been a revelation. He has the energy of youth combined with a dazzling inventiveness that seems effortless.

Fingers crossed for tomorrow then...