Another Vocal Rehearsal...

Just back from another vocal rehearsal and feeling pretty chuffed with how it went although I have to admit that as well as feeling a lot more comfortable with the songs, another big part of my chuffness lies with the purchase of a new toy.  The Zoom H1 portable recorder.

I don't have a scooby about its reputation amongst the audiofiles and I don't really care.  I think it's awesome.  Brilliant sound quality and I should have had one of these things years ago!

Aaaand the good news is that is that after listening back on the rehearsal I'm feeling pretty good with how things are going.  I've replaced a couple of songs from last time and put them into a potential set order.

Personal Jesus (Depeche Mode)
No concerns with this one.  It'll be good to hear the band rock this one up.

Breathe (Prodigy)
I need to watch where to come back in from some of the breaks but I think it'll be easier to follow the musical cues from the band.

History Repeating (Propellorheads)
This is fun to sing, the songs got a great groove.

Istanbul (They Might Be Giants)
Getting to grips with the phrasing now and also figuring out the best parts where I can take a breath.

Love Rears Its Ugly Head (Living Colour)
This was more comfortable to sing than last week.  Another song where figuring out where breaths can be taken is key.

Punch & Judy (Marillion)
Getting better with the intro and first lines of the verses but still needs work.  I also stumble on the second line of the last verse which was odd as it wasn't an issue before.

Crazy Horses (Osmonds)
Not sure if this is fitting with the other songs but that's likely down to the fact that I need a second vocalist so currently I'm not singing along with a chunk of the song when I feel I should.  Hopefully if someone can do the second vocal part it'll sound better.

Stone Cold Crazy (Queen)
Damn it, I printed off the Metallica version and they changed some of the lyrics.  Curse you Hetfield!!!  Hadn't tried this one before tonight and wasn't sure if I could do it.  Changed second and third verses aside (grrrr), I got through those lyrics that I could use and am quite happy it'll come good.

Two Tribes (Frankie Goes To Hollywood)
My phrasing is all over the shop with this one.  I think it's because Holly Johnson doesn't sing a verse the in the same way throughout the song.  I'm hoping it won't be so tricky when singing it with the band as I can do my own thing with the phrasing and it's not going to clash like it does now.

Whippin' Post (Allman Bros)
I really wasn't trusting my ears with this (the driving force behind buying the H1) but I've listened back a couple of times and I think I can trust them now.  Happy happy, joy, joy!

War Pigs (Sabbath but with the FNM faster pace)
Another one I tried for the first time and it's a lot of fun to do.  My only concern is that it might be too long for the set.

The set's probably going to need a trim by a song or two but I'm really looking forward to getting the band in to see what they can do to them.  

That's all for now!