The Story So Far... Part II

Submitted: 2007-11-21 10:31:05

The story of System 32, part II
Baptism of Fire, Rich's first gig

T'was a dark and stormy night and we found ourselves, replete with instruments, within the safe warm confines of the golden lion on the Open Mike night. Many other musicians had reached the same destination that night and we found ourselves awaiting our turn to be called to the stage. It had almost been an eternity since we last played there as a 3 piece but we still recognised a few familiar faces. This was to be a new start for System 32, as we felt we had stagnated a little over the last few months and is was also Rich's introduction to live paying. He had been playing guitar for a few years, jamming with us for a couple of years but this was to be his first performance in front of a live and relatively cognescent audience.

It has to be admitted that Rich was a little on the nervous side, but we were in a pub, so he took the obvious course and began to consume the hostelry's wares avec gusto. "Would anybody like another drink?" became his battle cry, half invitation, half challenge. With in no time at all, the defiant cry became a half slurred battle garble. A demon appeared on my left shoulder and cackled in my ear, "Man, this guy knows how to party." A demon also appeared on my right shoulder (The Angel that once stood there and myself have long since parted company) and cried, "He's going to be too plastered to play!" Come to think of it, I was not far off that state myself. The fact that I was holding conversations with diminutive beings perched on my shoulder perhaps bears testament to this.

Thankfully the Host spotted us rapidly reaching the point of inebriation and called us up on stage. Richard desperately lunged towards a position at the back of the stage but Matt had already teleported there and gave him an uncharacteristic snarl. Hiding at the back is his idiom and he guards it ferociously.

So Rich was relegated to a position at the front and discovering that even the most diminutive of us cannot hide behind a mike stand.

The first 3 songs went well, so we dared an encore and got away with it. It was all going so well. Nothing 'spontaneous' had happened. Then just as we were making our way back to the safety of our chairs we were accosted by a drunken bloke who said," Do you know 'Chasing Cars?' He motioned that he would like to sing us and Alex, on a post performance adrenaline high, agreed to it immediately. Matt and I looked at each other and, loyal to the death for the band, gave or call to arms, "You're on your own, lads!" and we fled to the refuge offered by the bar.

Rich had got trapped between Alex and the stage and found himself being bundled back wards and his guitar being shoved in his hands. "We're doing 'Chasing Cars'" was announced to his befuddled visage. Resistance was futile.

Despite not having practised this song at all, both Rich and Alex knew their way round it, rather like a tourist knows his way round the Paris Metro after glancing at a map on the wall. When the drunken guest singer...

To be continued...

(558 words)

- Posted by Harley

<< Previous Blog || Other Recent Blogs || Subscribe to feed || || Next Blog >>

Alex Hall

21 Nov, 2007

Haha, you've left it at the pivotol moment when disaster struck! Can't believe you didn't add that one small detail that follows! oh well, can't wait for the next installment dude! :-)

Rich

21 Nov, 2007

dude thats awesome but you leave it at such a pivitol moment! plus theres sooooo much more you need to get in there.
one point... He had been playing guitar for a few years, jamming with us for a couple of years but
I think that needs correcting, it was a couple of weeks jamming at best...