It’s been a while since I last contributed a blog so it’s long overdue as quite a few things have happened over the last 6 months. So, where to start..
Firstly, tenek now have this brand new website which has been much needed as our previous one was starting to feel a little dated and further maintenance became an issue. We are really pleased with the new version, it looks great and has a more contemporary feel to it. Plus we’ve added a load of new pics, some of which are quite rare and haven’t been seen since the days of Myspace which is where we first launched the band back in 2007. I’d like to say a big thank you to Paul & Cheri for the huge amount of hard work they’ve put in over the last few weeks putting it all together.
We’ve also finally started an Instagram account where I’m posting pics that haven’t been seen before, I’m also trying to keep that in chronological order to make it a journey through the band’s history. It’s a lot of fun looking back and seeing how much we actually did, particularly in the first five years. This year, our aim is to finish the re-releases of the Toffeetones material. We have two more singles left to do and hopefully, we can find some rarities or demos to add to them. More info soon.
As for my other projects…
Sinestar
As many of you know Sinestar were supposed to be playing a farewell gig back in August 2020 in Bristol at our spiritual homeland of The Fleece. Obviously, due to the Pandemic, this was unable to go ahead but we are extremely determined to play this gig at some point in memory of our bass player James Skuse who sadly passed away a year ago. We’ve also been working on a final release which is going to be a 5 track EP featuring several new tracks and two fantastic remixes from Mesh who have always been hugely supportive. There should be more news about both EP and the gig in the coming months.
Agency-V
Agency-V is a great project that came about during the lockdown and has developed really well over the last year, a debut EP ‘No Divide‘ was released back in May 2020, and then came an alternative EP in October featuring some incredible remixes from Andy Gray, Tin Gun, Inertia, NSS, Baba Vanga & Psykelektric. We are currently working on new material and plan to release both EPs plus new tracks on a limited edition CD at some point this year.
Decade-8
Decade 8 is a new project formed between Jason Holloway, Richard Bottom, and myself. We are currently working on tracks for our debut single which we hope to release in late Spring. It’s a synth-wave with guitars kind of vibe and our first completed track ‘Masterminds’ has been getting some plays on various radio shows and receiving a really positive reaction. Decade 8 will also feature vocals from the hugely talented Amber Burnett so definitely one to watch out for.
Tin Gun
Tin Gun are currently preparing the 3rd single ‘Devils & Angels‘ for a late March release, the artwork is currently being created by the brilliant Simon A. Brett. There is a Psykelektric remix of the track which sounds immense. Tin Gun have also put together a ‘reveal’ video clip that finally names the mysterious members. Tin Gun have also recently added an Instagram account and new music is currently in production. Another single will be released in the Summer which may include an interesting cover version.. *Check out our BandCamp page!
As well as these projects I’ve also been playing guitars on various sessions including several tracks on the forthcoming EmT album which is sounding amazing, it’s been great fun to do. The first of these tracks ‘Diva‘ was released recently as a single so do check it out!
I also played guitars on a track called ‘Soul Riser’ for The Stir Fry Pop Star’s debut album ‘Soul Messiah’ and assisted on a remix of the track with the legendary Tim Dorney from Republica.
I recently also played guitars on a track called ‘Spiral Escape‘ that Geoff was producing for a project called Monuvention, we had a lot of fun with this as it had been a while since we’d collaborated on anything.
In other news… I recently tested positive for Coronavirus so haven’t been able to do much at all in the last month or so. Recovery has been slow but I’m looking forward to getting back into the studio as soon as possible as there’s always plenty to do.
Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope everyone is doing ok in these very strange times. Here’s to getting back to some normality and hopefully some live music at some point in the near future.
Speak soon,
Pete x