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A rare occasion where I'm able to throw a blog post down. So here we are!

Its easy to lay into students for being workshy, cocksure waste of spaces, and for the most part, with good reason. But since I started my OU course, it seems I haven't even had time to turn my head. Its May already, for goodness' sake!
We played in The Old Library in Cardiff last night. Cardiff, eh? Crazy name, crazy traffic system. What ARE they doing to St Mary Street? Trying to navigate to the venue (through a city that I used to live in and know intimately) last night was like trying to drive through crazytown, while blindfolded, with no arms or legs and a strong sense of regret.

We eventually got there safe and sound, and played our set. Managed to air our newest song 'T4 (on the beach)' to a small but kind audience, and inspired by Simon of Laura's Diary giving an explanation as to the creation of a song, please indulge me whilst I deconstruct our latest.

T4 (on the beach)

Gerard Herbert was just five months old
Born with no legs and one arm
Born in February of '39
It could be said he was the start of it all

Mummy and Daddy took him to the doctor
To have the little 'monster' put down
The doctor wouldn't do it without breaking the law
Consequently T4 was born

and we're all dancing on the beach
the beach
the beach

T4! T4 stands for television
T4! T4 stands for termination

I knew a child born with all limbs intact
But with a defect making her slowly drown
She broke all records in her very short life
Could you say to her mum that it is best to have her put down?

now we're all drowning on the beach
the beach
the beach

T4! T4 stands for television
T4! T4 stands for termination

It came as some surprise to learn, via that ever growing font of knowledge, that T4, the weekend morning teen-aimed slot on Channel 4 in UK, shares its name with the forced euthanasia programme set up in Nazi Germany.

It seemed incredible to me that this could happen - after all, I'm sure if Tesco brought out a new range of trendy OAP's clothes and called them the 'Senior Sitizen division' (or 'SS division' for short), that it wouldn't go unremarked!

Gerhard Herbert Kretschmar, mentioned in the first line of the song, was a German child born with severe mental and physical disabilities. After receiving a petition from the child's parents, Adolf Hitler (you might've heard of him) authorised one of his personal physicians, Dr Karl Brandt, to have the child killed.
This marked the beginning of the program in Nazi Germany known as Action T4, a "euthanasia" program which ultimately resulted in the deliberate killing of about 200,000 people with mental/physical disabilities.

Just less than fifty years later, some bright spark in a meeting suggested T4 as the name for the happening 'yoof' programming slot.

Roughly fifty five years later, my cousin ('I knew a child born with all limbs intact') was diagnosed with having 'Tay Sachs' syndrome - a rare degenerative disorder. It presents a relentless deterioration of mental and physical abilities which commences at six months of age and usually results in death by the age of four. Amber nearly made it to seven years old.
During her life, her parents often had to fight with hospitals in order for Amber to get the care she needed. Ultimately a statement was released by Cardiff and Vale NHS trust, saying that 'continued referral for resuscitation was not in Amber's best interests'.

The song takes all of this information and wraps it up with spiky guitars and thumping beats, and leaves listeners to ask themselves questions.

Gareth came up with the guitar riff that intro's the song and forms the verse. Originally the chorus was spikier, more in the style of the verse, but when writing the lyrics I thought that simple power chords made for a stronger chorus...reminiscent to me of 'Holy Bible' era Manics.

The middle eight 'dropdown' was pitched to Nathan as an opportunity to do some Phil Collins style fills (think of the most famous bit of 'Something in the Air Tonight', or the Eastenders doofdoofdoof). He's done us proud (but then, he always does).

I hope you enjoyed this first 'behind the scenes' of the creation of our songs...I have to admit, I enjoyed deconstructing it, and remembering the thoughts and inspiration that went into its creation.

I guess we should try and get a recording of it uploaded, so you can listen to it!

Or, you know...maybe come to one of our gigs...!

Till next time,

Dim
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