Postcards From The Coast - Vol. 4

Comparison Is the Thief of Joy. Supposedly. I guess it depends on what you’re comparing yourself to.

There are reasons people are adamant you shouldn’t compare yourself to others. A main one is that it can take away the good feeling you might have about your own achievements.

Quick example, this past Sunday I was out running, the session was designed for only a few hard miles of speedy effort. I returned home feeling good about my pace during the run only to then find myself watching two of the best runners in the world Sebastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha break boundaries that many thought were impossible running a sub 2 hour marathon. An astounding feat.

Suddenly my pace didn’t seem so good!

Anyway, I make this point to tell you in a roundabout way that alongside my musical endeavours that makes this creative venture roll I have been training to run a marathon.

For those of you who don’t know me outside of music circles, you won’t be aware that I used to spend large parts of my summers training and competing in the 100m, 200m around the Southwest. As such moving up to the marathon distance (42.2km) is certainly new ground. Pair this with the fact I have chosen to take on the North Devon marathon, a hilly route along the beautiful coastal paths in the middle of summer only adds another layer of complexity to the matter. So, if you find yourself, like I was, comparing your efforts to the best in the world please do so

A)       as a bit of fun, in my case to see how far ahead the best pros are!

B)       remember the fact that you probably haven’t seen all the work it takes someone to get to where they’ve got to

C)      everyone has unique talents and experiences so comparing your internal struggles to their external success is a futile exercise

I only wrote that list out to remember to remind myself of these things but hopefully they are good for you as well!

Back in the studio (ah the music industry, another where comparison can be severely debilitating) it has been another month of progress, with a new track fully finished, more about that at the end of this Postcard, and some new writing I’m very excited to share live at a gig soon.

The only bump in the studio road this month was the two days I spent rewriting one of my tracks four times. Before deciding to stick with most of the first version.

These things happen; rewrites are a big part of the process and refining tracks has become a part I really enjoy because after God knows how many songs you come to realise you don’t always get the words right the first time!

Now talking about finding the right words, sometimes we see or use a phrase so much it might start to lose its strength. I hope that isn’t the case here though because I must say a huge thank you! to all of you reading that took time to vote for me in the latest round of the Road To Lakefest 26.

Your generosity has helped me gain a place in the live semi-finals and automatically guarantees me a slot at the festival later this year. This is something I’m super excited about!

Having grown up around the music festival environment some of my favourite memories have been watching artists from Ben Howard to Bastille to Jason Mraz grace the stage. Getting another opportunity to play a big festival is something I’m immensely grateful for and I can’t wait to share my songs, stories and entertain at Eastnor Castle in Early August. As well as watch some great artists do their thing (Newton Faulkner, I'll be there).

It has been four months of Postcards From The Coast and to show my appreciation for all of you who take the time to read this scattering of my monthly news and thoughts below is an exclusive private link to my onlyfans page.

No thankfully that is not the case, the link will lead you to the first 30 seconds of my latest unreleased track Run Free. It has been a wrestling match to get this one finished from when I initially wrote the song back in late 2022 but I’m stoked with how it has turned out, and I promise it will have been worth the wait.

https://on.soundcloud.com/kSlkcVqza9E8CY5E6x

Also plans for an acoustic version as well but you’ll have to let me know if that is something you would like…

 Initially written about interrailing around Europe where I found my way through Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia and Northern Italy at its core the song is all about trying to make the most of this wonderful life whilst we have the chance.

Over the last few years, it’s probably the song more than any other that people have asked me about, so again I thank you, this time for your patience. Soon you will be able to add it to your wonderful road trip and travel playlists.

After all that if I was going to compare myself to anything, I think I would compare to the person I was who wrote Run Free back at the end of 2022 and appreciate all the work that has been done to get to this point. I must stress not only by me but other musicians, videographers/photographers, engineers, bookers, venue owners and basically anyone who continues to give me opportunities and helps me to do what I LOVE.

There is still a lot of work to be done but I’m grateful for it all up to now

Until the next one.

Keep on smiling!

Postcard No. 4 - A marvellous morning looking out over Woolacombe bay to Baggy Point

(a small part of the marathon route!)