Living for the Music

Music. If we've spoken recently, chances are we were talking about music. Either playing it or being a fan of it. I've enjoyed these conversations immensely and feel so blessed and honoured to be putting peoples stories in to words.

However, up until a few years ago, I'd never been to a concert. Some of it was through fear of crowds (being 5'2” doesn't help). The other reason is my hearing.

Because I hear too much.

I have a condition caused by my ear canals being too narrow, which focuses sound onto a tiny area of the ear drum. In turn, it means that I can hear very high and very low end frequencies, something which most people lose with age.

The first concert I went to was Rage Against the Machine in Finsbury Park. Thanks to it being outside, the sound dissipated and meant that I didn't come home with tinnitus and a migraine.

But not all concerts are held outside and, like many people, I was desperate to go and see my favourite bands play live.

We discovered a solution at the BPM show in Birmingham. While it's primarily a trade fair for the dance music and club industry, they also had several vendors who dealt with hearing loss and protection. One of the products they carried were tiny ear plugs with interchangeable filters. These little filters would take out the frequencies which were deemed dangerous to my hearing.

Last year, I was blessed with the opportunity to upgrade my over the counter earplugs to a pair of custom fitted ones. Sleek, beautiful, and comfortable enough to sleep in, they now go everywhere with me. On top of it all, I can now go to a concert happy in the knowledge that I'm going to enjoy the music as much as everyone else around me.

I'm an advocate for looking after your hearing. Whether you go to concerts or work in a noisy environment, one of the things you can't get back is your hearing. Once it's gone, it's gone.

There are a number of people and places that you can turn to for help with your hearing.

Action on Hearing Loss were the people I approached at the BPM show. They have advice on a wide range of hearing subjects and their shop stocks a range of products.

Alpine MusicSafe Pro Filter Ear Plugs were the first ones I used.

For custom made ear plugs, Google for local specialists. Mine came from Specsavers and cost around £130.

Look after your hearing and, most of all, keep enjoying the music!

~~~

I'm currently writing two books on music. One is about tribute bands while the other is about Foo Fighters fans. If you'd like to get involved, please feel free to email me at:

rae (at) raegee.co.uk

Or get in touch via the comments.

Thank you!

This Is Just a Tribute - Part 1

It started with a photograph and ended with a book.

Or at least the bare bones of a book.

For a long time, I'd wanted to write something that my Mum could read. She won't touch my novels because, well, too much sex and violence for her. She doesn't want that. She wants something positive and happy. Truth be told, I don't blame her, because I want the same, too.

When I first started publishing my books, I was in a very dark place and they became an outlet for me to express what I was feeling. What followed were three novels written in rapid succession. One of them went on to win awards, something I'm still proud of today.

As the years moved on, so did I, and I found that I had a desire to put more happy things out in to the world. And, four years after my first book hit the shelves, here we are.

I've always wanted to combine my love of writing and music. It's a topic that many of my friends have requested. So how did I end up with an outline for a book about tribute bands and a list of people to contact?

There's a few reasons. The biggest one is my family. They're ridiculously talented when it comes to music.

First, there's Mum and Dad.

Then there's Andy.

Up next is Joe

And finally, there's me. I write books.

Drink silly amounts of tea.

And throw parties where I get to wear really cool clothes.

But I'll never be stick-twirling, vinyl-spinning, busking-for-your-airfare-home* kind of cool. Instead I use my talents to express my love of music rather than play it.

Secondly is because I've spent a lot of time working with, and watching, tribute bands. Joe got his start by playing with bands that covered the likes of Metallica and Iron Maiden. There were nights where he'd play three or four sets with three or four different bands. He now plays for a wedding band and composes music for video games and adverts. Andy still DJ's, and Mum and Dad, well, like the rest of us, will play in any place that will have them.

This book is, in a way, a tribute to them and the love of music that they instilled in all of us. From the early days of listening to Cream and the Beatles, to more recent times when we've packed up the car and headed to Wembley or Milton Keynes, they gave our family a bond that was forged from an unwavering love for music.

*Apparently they were waiting for the bus to come and take them to the airport and NOT busking for the airfare home. Dad thinks that the latter option would have been more fun.

~~~

Are you in a tribute band? I've got interview spots available and would love to talk to you. Interviews can be done in person or over the phone (In person interviews are dependent on location. I will call you for phone interviews). Please get in touch via the comments or email:

rae (at) raegee.co.uk

More Thoughts on Paris

It's been nearly a month since the attacks in Paris and I'm still coming to terms with what happened, especially inside the Bataclan. I'm still trying to process why anyone would walk into a packed music venue and plough down nearly one hundred people.

I know the basic whys and wherefores of what happened at the Bataclan. It was a soft target. There were a lot of people in one place. In the eyes of the terrorists, music is the work of the devil and no one should be allowed to enjoy it.

But there's still that other “why?”. The one question that will never quite be formulated. Just “Why?”.

Why did it have to happen?

Why did so many people have to die?

Why did they even have to die at all?

Why can't we just live in peace?

Yet still I struggle with the senselessness of it all. People who were having a night out were cut down in their prime. People who didn't expect to die that night didn't have the chance to tell their friends and families that they loved them one last time. People who were just enjoying life never went home. People who survived now having to rebuild their lives.

I know that part of it is the feeling that I had a lucky escape. Just a few days before Paris happened, I returned from a trip around Europe that saw me take in two concerts. I laughed, I sang, I danced, I lived. I did exactly what those people were doing on that fateful night in Paris.

Paris was one of the options I had back in November. I was going to go there to see the Foo Fighters play before maybe moving on to catch a concert in the days afterwards. Or I may have seen a show in the days before theirs.

Then Megadeth announced a short European tour. While I could still have seen them in Birmingham (before flying on to Paris the day after for the Foo Fighters) it was decided that I'd go and see Megadeth play in Dublin on November 9th. My Foo Fighters show was moved to the November 8th Berlin show.

I returned home from my trip on November 10^th.

On Friday November 13^th, while curled up on the couch, I watched in horror as Paris came under siege. I cried as the death toll rose. I mourned for those who'd lost their lives, whether at the restaurants, stadium or the Bataclan. With a heavy and aching heart, I realised that live music will never be the same again.