The long slog...

So long 2010! And what a long ride you've been...

Highlight of the year is definitely recording the best material Charge of the Light Brigade has done, our debut full-length record The Defiant Ones. It's been a long arduous process, and we switched drummers as recording drew to a close, but the end result is shaping up just fine. There's some great tracks coming, from opening rocker "Last Door Down" to the rolling pop swing of "All You Are To Me" to the epic pomp of closer title-track "The Defiant Ones". We've revisited the material from our first EP We Haven't Been Properly Introduced, and those tracks have bigger cojones now, some real hairy mojo. In a good way! We've even dug further back in the vault, polishing up earlier Sneyd pieces "Wheels Come Off" and "The Real Heart". Marc Koecher's production is superb as ever, really rich and complex, and Jason and Zack did wonderful work on bass and drums. My own writing continues to develop, along with that fragile instrument people call a voice. All in all, it's a great mess o' tunes.

Beyond that, getting out our first EP and going out with a newly revitalized band (twice) was a great feeling. Jason joining the band made a huge difference for getting back in the live world, and his half-cocked jocularity, steady playing and mad range of vocals have added a lot of great dimension to the band live.

The lowlight was definitely the great drummer hunt in the summer. Zack Mykula, a long-time stalwart playing with me, decided to move on to focus on some new projects he was getting going, just as we were finishing up the tracks for The Defiant Ones. Talk about hard to replace! Zack's a superb drummer, and an original thinker behind the kit. And wonderfully stoic and dry, one of the city's true curmudgeony best. We auditioned a good bunch of guys as replacements, and boooooyyyyy was it tough finding anyone even remotely in the same ballpark. We did meet a few really great guys, but it ain't easy when you're looking for the right combination of technical skill, hard-hitting, and someone on the same wavelength to top it off. You know, those alt-rock-prog-pop sophisticated-creative-but-restrained guys don't exactly grow on trees. After many auditions and a few near-hits, we finally lucked into playing with Owen Tennyson, the drummer for Toronto new wavers Blue Peter. Owen's worked out fantastically, bringing his own panache and outgoing style to the band.

Can't wait to get the album out, and get on with the scads of work that entails! But fuck, it's waaaay better than waiting around mixing. Sometimes, the recording process can be a huge grind, and it's easy to lose sight of what you're trying to achieve. But the beast is done, the beast lives! More details about the release coming up real soon.

Happy New Year, and bring the good times. Charge!!